The tremors of the pandemic had already wrecked the economy, which is now being worsened by natural calamities. West Bengal and Orissa have been acutely hit by cyclone Amphan. The West Bengal government notes the cyclone’s impact is more severe than the pandemic. There have been colossal damages to life and property. The financial impact of the same is estimated at a loss of about Rs 1 trillion.
To cover the losses made, having a comprehensive home and auto insurances can help to a certain extent. Insurance bundling essentially means buying a home, auto, and other insurances from the same company. It is seen as a beneficial practice, that’s simply because it has the potential savings to cover insurance costs. At a stretch, when businesses across all sectors have been jolted, there is one marketplace that picked up fairly – digital insurance. Web aggregators like Policybazaar have reported a 20% growth in sales in March 2020.
According to the EY-ASSOCHAM report, as of FY18, India is the 11th largest insurance market in the world. There are around 24 life insurance and 33 non-life insurance companies in India. “Bancassurance and agency channels account for over 90% of insurers’ new business premiums in India. Due to the lockdown restrictions, sales through these channels have been severely impaired,” says Pratyusha Mekala, an insurance analyst at GlobalData.
Home insurance
Home insurance policies are of mainly two types – fire insurance policy or a comprehensive householder package. The former covers your property against fire, storm, lightning, flooding, cyclone and the second one includes add-on protection against electrical mishaps, burglary, and sometimes a personal accident cover to offer an interim income for a brief period.
Auto insurance
The recent cyclones have damaged many vehicles due to flooding and high wind-speed causing trees to fall on them etc. leading to massive damage. Such calamities could cause two types of damages – exterior and interior damages, and engine damages. The former one can be easily fixed but the second one can be expensive and complicated to recoup.
The insurance companies advise not to start a car submerged due to flooding as the water gets into the engine and can cause further damage. Calamities like floods are covered in a car insurance policy, but not consequential losses. Having expensive add-ons and accessories like a GPS, a high-end sound system is to be declared to your insurer when buying a policy for an extra premium. In case of any damage to these accessories, it will be covered under the policy.
Apart from home and auto insurance, life insurance and a personal accident cover offer an additional shield, as one cannot simply anticipate the damage caused by the wrath of nature. Thus, having a comprehensive insurance package may help minimize the financial losses during the time of turmoil and lend a hand to rebuild for tomorrow.
