GENERAL INSURANCE BLOG

A fire can start anywhere and you will be surprised to know that you may have as little as two minutes to escape from such fires to safety. Early warning signs and proper steps taken once the fire has been detected can save your life as well as others. Most of the home fires that occur are preventable and you should follow certain fire safety tips to protect yourself as well as your family from fire hazards.

Buying home fire insurance is the first step towards protecting your house from an unforeseen fire hazard that may destroy your complete property. But along with this, you need to know some safety tips to protect yourself if and when there is a fire outbreak in your home or office or any other such building.

• Smoke alarms are the basic detectors that must be installed within the building so that you are immediately aware of if there is some fire in your house. Such fire alarms can be installed in your living room and all of the bedrooms. Installing fire alarms does not finish your job and you need to take care if they are working properly by regular checks. You may even need to replace their batteries periodically.
• Have a fire escape plan ready and your whole family should be aware of what to do to escape from the house in case of a fire outbreak.
• In case there is a fire in your home, try to escape as quickly as possible and do not go back to your house to gather any belongings. If your house is insured under home fire insurance, you will get everything back.
• If you live in an apartment, get to know all the escape routes and as soon as there is a fire outbreak, pull the fire alarm so that everyone else is aware of a fire in the apartment.
• In case there is a fire in your home, lie down close to the floor because smoke tends to rise higher. You can save your breath this way and can be safe inside the room for a longer period until help arrives.
• If you are locked inside in case of a fire, try to block all paths of the smoke entrance to your area. You can get any clothing material and place it at the entry point of smoke which is generally the bottom of doors. The wet cloth will prevent smoke from reaching your area and you will be able to survive for a longer period until help comes.
• All the inflammable materials in your home should be handled carefully and must be put in a safe place. In case there is a fire outbreak, try to keep flammable materials out of the reach of the fire, otherwise, they may cause an explosion risking everyone’s lives.
• In case you use fireplaces inside your home to warm the house in winters, install a fire safety gate around the fireplace.
• Fire extinguishers are a must at office places, but there must be fire extinguishers at your home also. Everyone in your family should be trained enough to use the fire extinguisher in case the need arrives.
• In case your clothes catch fire, do not run because running won’t douse the flames, instead, it will only help the flame. Lie down and roll on the ground and the flames must be smothered by a heavy blanket or rug.

All these tips can come in handy whenever there is a fire outbreak in your home or your office. You must follow these tips, but you must never forget to call the fire department to let the professionals handle the fire hazard.

Owning a home is generally seen as a sign of adulthood and financial responsibility. Buying a home is a huge step and a very big commitment and requires a lot of work on your part. You need to be aware of all the different things and steps involved with everything to fully comprehend what all things need to be taken care of before you buy a home such as EMI payments, property tax payments,best home insurance policies in India and several others. Many people rush into buying homes which is never a good idea because if you are not careful while buying a home, there is a probability that you may be making a bad investment.

When buying a home, you need to be sure that you can sustain the financial burden and it won’t mess up your financial stability and for that, you need to understand the various aspects of homeownership. You can consider this as a guide which will help you in making a correct decision that will be beneficial for you in the long run as a good investment. Going step-by-step, you need to ponder over carefully on all these things: -

• The need to buy the property - Many people decide to buy a home just because they want to prove to the world that they have attained adulthood and they can own a home. The decision to buy a home should not be made so precariously and proper thought must be given to whether you need to buy a property and how will it affect your financial stability in terms of mortgages.
• Shortlisting the Property - Once you have properly assessed your requirements for a property, you need to now ponder upon what kind of home would you like to live in. Shortlisting can also be done based on whether you want to move in immediately or you want to construct the house according to your preferences. Ready to move in property generally require enough finances for paying cash up-front to buy them but for a house under construction, you can take bank loans while paying less cash up-front. The property should also be shortlisted based on what kind of location you want to live in.
• Understand the tax implications - Everyone wants to reduce their taxes, and for this, you need to understand what kinds of taxes you have to pay and how can that tax be reduced smartly. You can save capital gain tax on residential properties but not on commercial properties.
• The Legal Perspective - Once you have decided on buying a property, take care of all the legal things that need to be done so that the property is registered under your name or someone in your family. All the documents should be clear, and you should be comprehensive with regards to all the paperwork for the property to avoid any issues in the future.
• Manage Finances - You need to have a stable financial system so that you do not face any difficulty in your daily life after deciding to buy a new property. You can also avail home loans from banks to finance the new property by paying less cash upfront to the developer of the property. Your home loan eligibility and the amount for which your home loan is sanctioned depends on your ability to repay the loan, i.e. indirectly your salary..

Home buying is generally categorized into three different stages which are the Pre-purchase stage, financial handling stage and the Post-purchase stage. You need to be properly involved in all of these stages and understand each and everything so that you do not face any legal problems in future.

Make sure that all documents are complete and if you rent out your property, have proper rent agreement papers made. Buying a home also means you need to have home insurance, and you can buy some of the best home insurance policies in India from different insurance providers at attractive premium rates. Compare the policies properly and buy the one that suits your requirements the best.

While driving on the Indian roads, the possibility of an accident can never be ruled out. Whether due to a momentary lapse on your part or due to oversight on the part of someone else, accidents can take place anytime and anywhere. But the damages/losses incurred due to it can be mitigated with the help of personal accident insurance in India.

What is Personal Accident Insurance

Personal accident insurance is offered in combination with Third-party policy. Insurance companies charge a nominal fee for offering this coverage. Under this policy, you will be reimbursed by the insurance company for injuries suffered while driving your vehicle.

Is it mandatory to get personal accident insurance in India?

As per the latest insurance regulations introduced by the government, it is mandatory to get personal accident insurance in India for a vehicle owner. The current regulations by IRDAI state that the car owners, as well as bike owners, will now get a mandatory personal accident cover of Rs. 15 Lacs as per their motor insurance policies. Previously, this cover was capped at Rs. 2 Lacs for car owners and Rs. 1 Lac for two-wheeler owners against a premium of Rs. 100 and Rs. 50 respectively.

Now the premium has been increased to Rs. 750 for a cover of Rs 15 Lacs. This premium is payable over and above the mandatory third party insurance cover. If the insured person wants a higher cover, then the same can be availed by paying a higher premium, which is to be decided by the insurance company. The coverage of the policy extends to the owners of the vehicle as well as the drivers of the vehicle, provided the availability of a valid driving license.

This improvement in the personal accident insurance in India was introduced after a judgement by the Madras High Court in the year 2017. While passing the judgement, the court noted that enhancing the personal accident cover will act as some kind of solace to the victim as well as survivors of the accident.

Though there are some exceptions applicable wherein the owner can opt-out of this mandatory personal accident cover i.e.

• If the vehicle owner already has a valid personal accident cover policy with a sum insured of more than Rs. 15 Lacs.
• If the owner already has a motor insurance policy with a compulsory personal accident cover with a sum insured of more than Rs. 15 Lacs for another vehicle owned by him/her.
• If the vehicle owner already has a separate compulsory personal accident policy.

Benefits of Personal Accident Insurance

Some of the standout benefits of subscribing to personal accident insurance in India have been listed here: -

• The policy covers in the case of the unfortunate death of the insured. The nominee is entitled to the entire sum.
• The cover is even provided for total permanent disability, permanent total disability, permanent partial disability and temporary total disablement.
• Some policies even cover hospitalization due to an accident and the cost of transportation for mortal remains in case of death.
• The dismemberment of any kind is also covered in some policies. Certain companies have also given said ratio and benefits for certain kinds of injuries that will then be paid to the policyholders
• Very few companies also provide optional coverage in case of burns. This can also be considered before personal accident insurance is taken into action.
• The treatment for the burns is also covered by some insurance companies.

With such extensive benefits on offer, availing personal accident insurance in India is a necessity for the vehicle owners.

Climate change is the shift in the temperature and weather patterns over a long period. It affects the entire planet by causing abnormally cold conditions in some parts of the earth, while some areas witness extreme heatwave conditions. Some regions are experiencing long dry spells, while others are experiencing devastating floods.

Human activities are primarily responsible for the rapid climate change across the planet. Excessive burning of fossil fuels like oil and gas and irresponsible exploitation of natural resources result in climate change. If you wish to buy home insurance online India to deal with damages due to untimely incidents, here’s how this may directly impact you.

1. Increase in premium:
Some regions of the planet are witnessing a higher impact of climate change and increased natural disasters such as floods, wildfires, deep freeze, rise in sea level, etc., than others. Home insurance premiums have shot up at an alarming rate in such regions. It is becoming very costly for homeowners to buy home insurance online India policy in such areas.
This is logical as the risk of insuring houses in these places and the number of claims is rising. Hence, it is becoming financially unsustainable for insurers to provide insurance services at the prevailing rates. Home insurance premiums have increased by around 10%-12% on an annual basis. This rate varies and is even higher for houses in heavy disaster-prone areas.

2. Rise in the number of inhabitants:
Disaster-prone areas offer inexpensive land, which increases their demand. This results in the increasing population and limited availability of land in disaster-prone areas. However, houses in areas prone to flooding or nearby forests always have a higher risk.
Houses near a forest always pose a higher chance of starting a wildfire by accident. More house inhabitants mean more damage during severe flooding or other natural disasters. These factors influence home insurance policies, their terms and conditions, and premium in areas vulnerable to natural disasters.

3. Difficulty in getting home insurance:
Residents in regions that are witnessing disasters due to climate change are finding it difficult to get their homes insured easily. The probability of damage to their houses is very high because of the topography of their area. For example, rising sea levels due to climate change threaten the existence of dwellings close to the sea shores. Several cities in the world face the risk of extinction by submerging in seawater due to rising sea levels.
Insurers are not interested in insuring houses in such high-risk areas. This makes it difficult for people to get their homes insured, even after shelling out high premiums, which are often unaffordable for the middle & low-income strata. This increases the risk of complete financial ruin in the event of a natural disaster.

Abrupt climate change is catastrophic. It can cause extreme heat or cold conditions, floods and droughts, hurricanes, and tornadoes. Moreover, it can also result in biodiversity loss. Although climate change is inevitable, we can control the pace with which it changes. With the risk of abrupt climate change looming on our heads, the wisest decision in these times is to buy home insurance online India. Opt for comprehensive coverage against damages to the home structure and contents, loss due to short circuits, fire, floods, etc.

Click HERE to buy home insurance online India.

Disclaimer: The information provided above is for illustrative purposes only. To get more details, please refer to policy wordings and prospectus before purchasing a policy.