What happens to your Car Insurance when you Change Cities?
Let's say you are moving to a new city and your car is coming with you. Now what happens to your car insurance? Does the old one work? Does it stay valid in the new city? Do you get it modified? Do you get a new one?
Answer: If you are a car owner and are moving from one city to another, then you are required to make some changes to your car's documentation. You need to re-register their vehicle to the local RTO of your new address. AND, you also need to make a few important changes to your existing car insurance policy.
Insurance policies are valid all over India and you can take claim at any location. Then what is the issue? There are some recommended changes that you should make to ensure convenience and safety.
1. Update Address in your Policy
With the advent of digitisation, insurance companies have started making communications through SMS and e-mails; and now, some are even using WhatsApp. However, many times insurance companies send the renewed insurance policy through post to your registered address. In such a case, it would reach your wrong (or previous) address.
Even during claim settlement, you are required to produce the proof of your current address. And if you don’t update your old address, the mismatch of information can create confusion and difficulty in taking the claim.
2. Update Your Insurance Plan
The cost of an insurance policy’s premium depends on several factors including the capacity of the engine, age of your car and city in which you are living. For instance, if you are living in Delhi, you are liable to pay a higher premium due to higher risk of getting into an accident. However, if you are living in a relatively smaller city like Mathura, then due to lesser traffic and lower risk of accident, you will be charged a lower premium.
Therefore, if you are shifting from a bigger city to a smaller one, it is advisable to upgrade your plan and reduce your premium. And it would be wise of you to upgrade to a comprehensive plan if you are moving to a metro city to cover any kind of accidental costs.
3. Take Valid Add-ons
Taking additional add-ons as per the road conditions of the city should be done to protect your vehicle from any abrupt situation. For instance, if you are moving to Mumbai which is prone to floods, it would be a great idea to get engine protection add-on. You can also add roadside assistance to get help in case of a breakdown.
Also, if you often travel with a co-passenger, it wouldn’t hurt to get insurance for your co-passenger at a minimal cost.