How Many Car Insurance Claims Can You File In A Year?

When you’re purchasing a four-wheeler, purchasing car insurance along with it is extremely important. The Motor Vehicle Act is a legal mandate for all car owners to purchase car insurance for their vehicles. The car insurance policy can protect you from paying hefty fines. You get the option of either purchasing third-party car insurance or comprehensive car insurance.

A car insurance plan can also help you protect your four-wheeler from unprecedented dangers on the road. In addition, if your car is damaged due to any events like accidents, natural disasters, etc., you get financial coverage from your insurance policy to deal with the damage repair costs. Once you have sifted through the car insurance price list, you can opt for the most suitable policy.

The coverage offered by your car insurance policy can safeguard you from financial burdens, and you can be at peace knowing your prized possession is covered from damages. To use the coverage offered by your insurance plan, you will have to file a car insurance claim.

What Are Car Insurance Claims?

Car insurance claims are procedures that you, as a policyholder, will have to follow to get insurance coverage for any damages that your car has faced or any third-party damages that your vehicle has caused.

Filing a car insurance claim with your insurance company will help you deal with the damage repair costs of your vehicle. Most insurers have a car insurance claim time limit under which you must file your car insurance claim. If you file a claim for any damages after this time limit, your insurer has the right to deny your claim. Generally, the time limit for filing a claim is around two to three days for most insurers.

Along with this, you must also learn about the car insurance claim rules and the file charges for the car insurance claim. To file the claim, you must learn about the process when purchasing the plan. Following the steps diligently will ensure that your claim is settled smoothly. Along with this, you must also provide all the necessary documents while filing the claim.

Most insurers like Tata AIG allow insurers to file a claim for their car policy online. With an online claim, the entire process is streamlined, and you get to initiate the claim with just a few clicks. Filing a car insurance claim is quite easy these days. But is there a limit on the number of claims you can file in a year?

How Many Car Insurance Claims Can You Make In A Year?

Usually, there aren’t any limits on the number of claims you can file under the car insurance policy in a year. However, filing multiple claims in a single year can heavily affect your accumulated NCB (No Claim Bonus). NCB discounts are quite helpful if you wish to lower your premium amount. Filing claims may wipe out your accumulated bonus. Numerous claims filed in a single year can lead to a hike in your premium amount.

Suppose you’ve included the Zero Depreciation cover in your insurance policy for your car. In that case, you may have to deal with certain restrictions on the number of claims you can file annually under the Zero Depreciation cover. The number of claims for this cover will be different for different insurers. If you have the Zero Depreciation cover in your plan, you must clarify the number of claims you can file.

How Many Times Car Insurance Can Be Claimed?

No number can be considered too many claims. It will depend on the type of claim and the degree of damage to the vehicle. If the degree of the damage is not that high, it would be better not to raise a claim. This is because dealing with small damage on your own can help you protect your accumulated NCB. It would be better if you filed a claim only if the damages were extremely severe.

Consequences Of Filing Multiple Car Insurance Claims

Given below are some of the consequences of filing multiple car insurance claims:

  1. NCB loss: No Claim Bonus (NCB) is the discount you get on the premium you earn for not filing any claims during the policy tenure. The percentage of discount you get rises with every consecutive year you do not file a claim. For example, you can get up to a 50% discount on the premium amount if you do not file a claim for five consecutive years. If you file a claim, you will lose out on the NCB benefits. It would help if you filed a claim only if the repair cost is higher than the discount you were bound to get.
  2. Premium hike: If you file numerous claims against the insurance company, the insurer may increase your premium amount when renewing the car insurance policy. When you file several claims with an insurer, they will begin to view you as a liability, which poses a higher risk to them. Therefore, to cover the risk, your insurer may increase the premium amount of the policy.
  3. Deductibles: Deductibles are the amount you will have to pay out of your pocket while filing a car insurance claim. If the repair cost is a bit lower or slightly higher than the deductible mentioned in the policy, it will be better not to file the claim.

Conclusion

Car insurance claims help you get coverage for any damages to your vehicle. However, you must file a claim only when necessary. While you can file numerous claims through your insurance policy, it can lead to severe disadvantages. For instance, you may lose your accumulated NCB discount, or your premium amount for the insurance policy may rise. Therefore, it would be better to file a claim only for severe damages and fix minor damages out of your pocket.