As per General Insurance Council (GIC), 60% of vehicles plying on Indian roads are not insured and most of them are two-wheelers and bikes. Ironically, the highest numbers of accidental deaths on Indian roads involve a two-wheeler. [1]
If Indian bike riders would have given serious thought to this fact that 34% of accidental deaths on the road involve a two-wheeler, all should have been rushing to renew bike insurance. Unfortunately, that is not the case. Hopefully, increased fines levied by the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2019 for plying without bike insurance and other traffic violations may change things for good on dangerous Indian roads.
The trouble with Indian two-wheeler owners is that they are infamously reluctant when it comes to renewing bike insurance. A recent survey by a private general insurance company revealed that 1 in 4 people didn’t bother to renew their car or bike insurance. Interestingly, 75% of respondents said that they bought fresh motor insurance after they were penalized by the traffic police for riding with a lapsed policy. [2]
When should you renew your bike insurance?
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Obviously, you need to renew bike insurance before the policy’s expiry date but the IRDAI provides a grace period for you to comply with the rules. The best policy on your part is to not allow your bike insurance policy to lapse. On Finserv MARKETS you can carry out hassle-free online Bajaj Allianz bike insurance renewal without two-wheeler inspection, even if your policy has lapsed.
To be one the safer side, it’s recommended to renew your bike insurance online 60 days before the due date. This will ensure that your policy doesn’t lapse and you can take advantage of no claim bonus (NCB). Renewing your bike insurance online is cheaper and faster compared to offline mode and you can instantly download a soft copy of your insurance certificate.
Another benefit of buying bike insurance online is that you don’t have to take your bike for a physical inspection even if your policy has lapsed. For instance, you can get Bajaj Allianz bike insurance renewal done in a few minutes without any physical bike inspection.
Are there any grace period for bike insurance renewal?
Fortunately, yes. Usually, when you apply to renew bike insurance after the due date, the insurer may ask for a physical inspection of your bike as a condition for renewal. But it is not mandatory with all insurance companies. For instance, you can do Bajaj Allianz’s two-wheeler insurance renewal available on Finserv MARKETS without physical inspection even after the due date.
The IRDAI allows a grace period of 90 days to renew your bike insurance. If you fail to do so within 90 days, you will lose your no claim bonus. After that, you will have to buy fresh bike insurance online or offline, which will cost you more.
Why should you renew bike insurance on time?
A break in bike insurance coverage can be costly because accidents come announced. Waiting out the entire grace period of 90 days to renew bike insurance and still riding your bike during that period can be risky. In case you hurt someone or damage your bike during this period, you’ll have to pay out of your pocket.
Don’t forget that your liability is unlimited in case of injury or death of a third-party in a road accident. In the unfortunate event that you meet with an accident leading to a severe injury or death of a person, the financial and legal repercussions can be very serious.
To avoid such situations, it’s recommended to go for auto-renewal of your bike insurance. Don’t ignore the mail sent by your insurer to renew bike insurance and don’t wait out the 90 day grace period just because your NCB is intact.
The excuse that bike insurance renewal is tedious and time-consuming is no longer valid as you can easily renew bike insurance online in a few minutes. The buying process is seamless and you can download the insurance certificate to your computer or smartphone. Now since the transport ministry has allowed electronic storage and furnishing of documents through mobile apps such as Digilocker and mParivahan app, there is no need to carry a physical copy of your RC, driving license and insurance certificate.
If your bike insurance is due for renewal, opt for Bajaj Allianz bike insurance renewal available on Finserv MARKETS to get access to 4,000 plus cashless garages across the country and enjoy NCB up to 50% by renewing on time.
Raj Kumar is a qualified business/finance writer expert in investment, debt, credit cards, Passive income, financial updates. He advises in his blog finance clap.
