Wondering why motor insurance is mandatory in India? First, let's consider a scenario. Have you ever faced a situation wherein you boarded the wrong train and reached some other location without enough money in your pocket? Or have you ever attempted horse riding without a trainer? Most of you must say ‘No’ for both these situations, but why?
The reason for the same is that you always need a saviour in such unfortunate situations, and that is what motor insurance does, in reality. Motor insurance protects you, your family, and third parties involved in it from a financial crisis.
For this reason, the Government of India has mandated having at least a third-party motor insurance plan. However, apart from financial help and legal aspects, there are other reasons why vehicle insurance is mandatory in India. Let us learn more about them:
To Get Protection from Unplanned Liabilities and Unforeseen Situations: Anyone of us can get stuck in the middle of the road with our vehicle after an accident, failure of the car’s engine due to rain, or after the theft of our vehicle. For all such unforeseen situations and unplanned liabilities, vehicle insurance comes as a saviour.
Financial Help in Case of Death or Disability of Third-Party: This is a key advantage of having a motor insurance policy. Whether you have a comprehensive motor insurance plan or third-party vehicle insurance, you get the benefit of getting financial help in case of loss or damage to a third-party person or property.
Mandated By Law: For the safety of its residents, the Government of India has mandated to have at least a third-party motor insurance plan for all those who own vehicles.
What Will Happen If You Do Not Have a Vehicle Insurance Policy?
Let us take an example to understand this.
Suppose you follow all the traffic rules while driving your car, but while parking your car, you accidentally hit another vehicle that was parked on the other side of your car. This will be third-party property damage caused by your car. This can be the first time you encountered any damage due to an accident by your vehicle. However, you have to pay for the losses to a third-party vehicle and in this situation, if you do not have vehicle insurance, then you may encounter:
Suspension of your vehicle’s registration
Suspension of your driving license
Legal punishment and proceedings
Fine because of driving without a motor insurance policy
Lack of financial cover in case of third-party damage and accident
How to Purchase a Motor Insurance Policy In India?
You can purchase a motor vehicle insurance policy in various ways. However, here we are going to discuss two most common ways to buy a motor insurance policy:
Online: Most vehicle insurance companies offer the facility of purchasing a motor insurance policy online. You can visit their website, select the required insurance plan, fill in all your required details, make an online payment, and you will get your vehicle insurance policy instantly. The best part of buying vehicle insurance online is that you can purchase a plan anytime and from anywhere.
Offline: Buying a vehicle insurance policy offline is a little different. For the same, you have to go to any of your insurance provider’s branches physically or hire an agent who can guide you to select a vehicle insurance policy. You need to provide certain documents, make payments, and then buy a plan. Generally, you have to be physically present at the time of buying motor vehicle insurance offline, which is a tedious task.
Conclusion
Purchasing a motor insurance policy is mandated by law in India, but apart from that it has many advantages which are mentioned above. However, be careful and vigilant while selecting a motor insurance policy and adding riders to it as riders may increase the amount of premium. So, stay updated on changes that may affect your policy and do your thorough research while selecting a vehicle insurance policy.
