Short Term Car Insurance Plans – Know in Detail

If you are looking for reliable and short-term car insurance plans in India, here is a quick guide to allow you better understanding on the same. Take a look.

The long-term car insurance policy offers a long-term commitment to car owners by protecting their four-wheelers under numerous covers. In case one is not looking for insurance for longer duration,  short-term plans are very beneficial too. Many insurers in the country these days are offering short-term car insurance plans, which we are going to discuss in this blog ahead.

A Quick Walkthrough on Short Term Car Insurance Policy in India

Let us start with elaborating on the meaning of short term car insurance India

These are plans to insure your car for short durations or for a temporary period. Though regular car insurance plans are available for long tenure of maximum 5 years and minimum 1 year, the short plans are available for a maximum of few months and minimum few minutes depending on the plan and the exact requirement.

If your motor insurance requirement is of short tenure and you do not want to waste money on buying a long term policy, you can go ahead with buying these short plans for short durations. These plans, which are common among car owners in the West, are getting accepted in India too.

Functioning of Short-Term / Temporary Car Insurance in India – How do they work? 

For people whose car insurance requirement is limited due to any specific reason or it is time bound, they are the ones who can take maximum benefit of these short term vehicle insurance policies. Also known as temporary car insurance policies, these short plans suit the purpose of people who do not need to secure their car for a long period due to some specific and strong reason such as;

• If you are driving a rented vehicle for a short duration of time
• If you are moving to a new city
• If you are a learner and trying your hand in driving car

In all the above cases, you can buy short term car insurance plans to suffice your particular short need as you do not require a year-long policy for these short time needs of a few days or months. Thus, it is better to go for the short-term 3 month car insurance plans in such cases.

Below is the information required to be submitted to the insurance provider for buying a short-term car insurance policy:

• Your personal details like name, address, gender, profession, etc.
• Documents of identification such as driving license.
• Documents for proof of address
• Car details like engine capacity, make and model of the car, fuel type, seating facility etc.

Various Short-Term Car Insurance Plans Available

Though short term car insurance plans serve definite purposes, their coverage is limited and is not as extensive like comprehensive car insurance plans. Here are some types of short – term car insurance policies;

1. Rental Car Insurance – Under this plan, the insured can avail short term coverage for a car that he/she has rented for a particular duration to cover damages against accidents, injuries due to accidents, etc. in a rental car.
2. Non- Owners Insurance – This plan is similar to a rental insurance plan. However, this plan caters only to private cars by providing coverage to them. So, this plan will suit you if you have borrowed a car from a relative or friend for a short duration.
3. Gap Insurance – These plans are available for cars that you buy on lease or loan and which are financed by another party. Here, the insurer reimburses for the market value of the car. This plan is made active in a situation when the vehicle is under complete loss with beyond repair damage. So, here if the amount of the loan is more than the IDV of the car, the Gap plan pays for the remaining amount to help close the loan of the policy owner.

Advantages of Short-term car insurance plans

Here are some key benefits:

• You can avail these plans for durations of one or 3 month car insurance as per requirement
• You can pay less premium cost as compared to regular policies
• You also get instant coverage within minutes
• These plans cover third party damages of property and injury
• They offer coverage for accidental damages
• Allow personal accident cover to the one driving the car
• You can customize the tenure of the policy
• Allow you mental peace
• You can buy a policy for minimum 30 days

When do you need a short-term car insurance plan

Below are the situations when you can buy a short term insurance plan

• If you use a rented car for a short-duration in a new city where you are on vacation
• If you are beginner at driving and learning to drive a car
• If you have borrowed a vehicle from someone and using it for a short-duration
• If you are looking at selling your car soon and want to insure it till the time you sell
• If you are using a car for a certain period in a new city on work tour
• If you do not have proper driving experience
• If you use your car to drive across rarely