Questions to Ask when Buying or Renewing Health Insurance

Health insurance has become an indispensable aspect of the lives of people these days, considering the risks they are exposed to and the spiraling cost of medical treatment. However, the million-dollar question is how to select the one health insurance policy that fits into your scheme of things?

Here we are suggesting few key points, which should be considered while buying a health insurance policy. These are:

Healthcare Needs
Insured Amount
Claim Process of Insurance company
Network Hospitals

What would be your Healthcare Needs in the Future?

You need to think about your health care needs, or any planned medical expenses or any issues while buying a health insurance. For example, there is any chronic illnesses in your family members. Now you need to think about the surgery-related costs of that particular medical condition. So, the time is appropriate to prepare a list of your known medical expenses so as to select a plan accordingly.

What should be the Insured Amount?

While choosing a health insurance policy online, you need to select the amount with care as it covers the medical expenses for a year. You should consider the medical treatment cost in your city as well consider the inflation rate for medical treatment. While, it is recommended to have some good numbers for sum insured, you should also analyze whether the premium you pay towards the policy is affordable for you or not.

Is the Claim Process Swift and Simple?

It is important that you get a claim without having to break into a sweat. The quick settlement of a claim is an important factor and for this, you need to check your company’s track record. The simplicity of the claim process is also very crucial. The simpler the claims process, the better it is for the insured. There should not be any cumbersome procedures involved in filing the claim. Hence, these two assume significance when it comes to choosing a health insurance policy online.

Claim Hassle Free

Claim Hassle Free

Number of Network Hospitals?

This is also an important aspect. You need to check the network of hospitals the insurance company has tied up with for the purpose of cashless treatment. In the event of a medical emergency, the hospitals in the network offer the treatment without making you pay the cash, as the insurer settles the medical bills directly with the hospital. Though, it is good to have more number of network, still It would be better if some of the network hospitals fall in the area you reside so that you don’t have to travel too much during a medical emergency.

Insurance Renewal

Now, let us delve into another important element i.e. renewal of health insurance . Everything carries an expiry date, and the same applies to health insurance as well. It is not only important to buy the health insurance policy, but also to renew the same before its expiry. Most of the insurance companies send reminders about the expiry date, but the onus is on the customers to renew the insurance. There are several things that could pop up in your mind while renewing a policy. Some of them are -

Renewal during grace period
No Claim Bonus/ Cumulative Bonus
Change in requirements
Availability of better health insurance policies

Why Avoid Renewal During Grace Period?

The insurance companies have a fixed grace period for the policyholders if they fail to renew the same before the policies lapse. However, it is always better to renew before the date of expiry, as during the grace period the insurers do not provide any coverage. So, do not ignore or miss the date of expiry for any reason.

Are you Getting No Claim Bonus/ Cumulative Bonus?

If you do not make a claim during a policy year, you become eligible for No Claim Bonus also known as Cumulative Bonus during the time of renewal. So, if you have not filed a claim, then check whether the Cumulative Bonus is reflective in your new policy premium or not. In order to avail of this benefit, the policy must be renewed within 30 days of the due date for renewal.

Are there any changes to family requirements?

You need to factor in new developments that may have taken place in your family since the time you purchased the policy until its renewal. After considering the same, you should analyze whether you require any add-ons as per new requirements during the renewal process.

Are there Better Policies Around?

Many things change in a year i.e. when an insurance policy is due for renewal. Therefore, you should look for new policies that provide better protection than the existing plan. If you happen to find a policy with good coverage for a premium that is not too high, then you should think of opting for the new policy. It makes absolute sense to make a switch towards a new policy with additional benefits. You can port your existing policy to new policy without compromising the benefit of current policy.

So, merely buying an insurance policy does not suffice; its prompt renewal is also equally important. Consider these aspects before buying and renewing insurance to avoid any inconvenience, and extract the best out of your health insurance policy.

If you need any help in understanding the health insurance or interested in buying the policy, our team would be happy to help.

Individual Health Insurance

Starting at only ₹5 per Day*

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Cashless Network Hospitals

Aragonda village

Bhandup west, mumbai

Changanacherry-

Channarayapatna

Charmarajanagar

Charni road mumbai

Chh,sambhajinagar

Chhatrapati sambhaji nagar

Chicalim, vasco-da gama, goa

Chikkaballapura

Dakshina kannada

Diamond harbour

Diomand harbour

Fatehgarh sahib

Gautam budh nagar

Ghatkopar west, mumbai

Gobichettipalayam

Goregaon west, mumbai

Jogeshwari west

Kalyan-dombivli

Kamothe navi mumbai

Khanda colony, panvel

Koparkhairane navi mumbai

Koperkhairne, navi mumbai

Lakhimpur kheri

Madeenaguda,serlingampally, hyderabad , miyapur ,

Mira road thane

Nallasopara east district palghar

Nerul east, navi mumbai

Noida extension

North 24 pargnas

North lakhimpur

Padmanabha nagar

Palanichettipatti

Pimple saudagar pcmc

Pimpri chinchwad

Purba bardhaman

Rajamahendravaram

Sulthan bathery

Thiruvananthapuram

Vanasthalipuram

Vashi navi mumbai

Virar west - 401303

**To understand exactly about the policy coverage, exclusions etc read the Policy Wordings carefully.**