1. Determine the sum assured needed for the policy

The total amount of coverage needs to be determined by the number of people that you want the policy to cover, your estimate of the health care costs and the existing coverage that you might have from other sources like employee provided group insurance.

2. Focus on the family members to be included in the policy- whether take individual cover or a floater

When buying for families check multiple options. Sometimes it’s beneficial from a cost perspective for the oldest member of the family to have a separate policy. Usually all insurance companies offer policies for coverage of you or spouse; and up to three children under one policy. Some policies also give coverage for dependent parents in the same policy.

3. Define your requirements of health coverage

Define what you want to cover yourself against – is it just critical illness, or injuries resulting from an accident, hospitalization expenses or OPD expenses as well. There are different types of health insurance policies available depending on your requirement and your budget.

4. Keep track of exclusions of the health insurance policy – both permanent and first year.

Exclusions define the ailments and the conditions under which the health insurance coverage will not be valid. For example a common permanent exclusion is cosmetic surgery. Such surgery is discretionary and usually not life threatening and performed at the insistence of the patient. A common first year exclusion is cataract; cataract surgery is covered from the second year onwards. This is to avoid moral hazard.

5. Keep an eye on the claim notification dates

Due to rising frauds and inconsistency in claims, insurance companies have made slight changes in claim notification period. The revised date has been changed to a period of 24 hrs to maximum of 7 days of discharge from hospital for different companies. So it has become very important to inform the insurance company about the claim within the specified period, otherwise the insured will be at a loss.

To understand the nuances of different types of policies and its price, feel free to seek the help of InsuranceMall to select the right products based on your need. Or you can directly call them on +91-22-30503050

InsuranceMall is the leading and first online insurance broker in India. With the motto to make our customer delighted and proud about their decisions, we’re always there to help them with best possible policy