HDFC Ergo is a general insurance company which is engaged in various aspects of the general insurance business. The company offers both retail as well as commercial general insurance products. While the retail products suit the needs of individuals, commercial insurance products are meant for businesses and industries. One of then products offered by the company is a car insurance plan. The plan offers a complete scope of coverage to a car.
Individuals can select any type of policy that they want. If they are looking only for the legally mandatory third party liability policy, it is available with the company. Moreover, a package policy is also available which covers the damages suffered by the car as well.
Key Benefits and Features of HDFC Ergo Car Insurance Plans
Car insurance plans offered by HDFC Ergo have some distinct benefits which can be seen in the following points –
- To help customers get fast delivery of their vehicles post repairs, HDFC Ergo has introduced a new service called ‘Overnight Car Repair Services’. Under this service the policyholder can take the damaged car to a preferred garage for repairs. The repairs would be completed overnight and the car would be delivered the next morning.
- Pick up and drop facility for the car is also offered by the company’s car insurance plans
- 24*7 claim assistance if provided under the car insurance plan. Customers can raise their claims either through an email or through a phone call
- The car insurance policy can be bought easily online without too much paperwork
- Approval of the claim is given at the earliest within 24 hours
- The company is tied-up with more than 5300 garages for offering the policyholders easy cashless claim settlement
HDFC Ergo Car Insurance Policy at a Glance
HDFC Ergo offers both liability only and comprehensive car insurance policies. Liability only plans are compulsory under law and pay for the financial liability incurred against third parties. Comprehensive policies, on the other hand, are better as they offer an all-round scope of coverage features. Here are some of the points of the comprehensive plan offered by the company –
- A range of add-on coverage benefits are available for increasing the scope of coverage of the car insurance plan. There are nine available add-ons which can be chosen based on the policyholder’s requirements
- The policy covers damages faced by the car due to natural or man-made causes and third party liability incurred if any third party is harmed or a third party property is damaged. There is also a personal accident cover which covers against accidental deaths and disabilities.
- There are some exclusions too which are not covered under the plan. For instance, accidents faced when driving without a valid license or under the influence of alcohol or drugs are some examples.
Insured Declared Value (IDV)
The amount of coverage offered by a car insurance policy is determined by the Insured Declared Value of the car. The Insured Declared Value is called IDV in short. The value is calculated using the market value of the car. Age-based depreciation is deducted from the market value of the car to arrive at the IDV. Here are the applicable rates of depreciation which are deducted from the market value for IDV calculations –
| Age of the car | Rate of depreciation applicable |
| Less than 6 months | 5% |
| 6 months to 1 year | 15% |
| 1 year to 2 years | 20% |
| 2 years to 3 years | 30% |
| 3 years to 4 years | 40% |
| 4 years to 5 years | 50% |
If the car is more than 5 years old, the IDV is determined by a mutual agreement between the insurance company and the policyholder. IDV is the maximum claim which the company is liable to pay. It is paid if the car is stolen and not recovered or if the car is completely damaged where repairs are not feasible. The latter case is a case of total loss. Under this situation, the scrap value of the car is deducted from the IDV and the balance amount is paid as claim.
HDFC Ergo Car Insurance Premiums
The premiums for HDFC Ergo car insurance policies are fixed by the company. The rate of premium is calculated based on a number of factors. When the policyholder provides the details of his car, the company uses the information provided by the policyholder to calculate the premium rate. Here are the factors which determine how much premium would be charged by the insurance company for its car insurance policies –
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The type of policy selected
Car insurance policies offered by HDFC Ergo come in two variants. One is the compulsory third party liability policy while the other is a comprehensive policy. Since the coverage features offered under both these plans are different, the premium rate is also different. Premiums for third party policies are fixed by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI). This premium is uniform across all third party liability car insurance policies. With effect from 1st April, 2018, the third party premiums fixed by the IRDAI for car insurance plans are as follows –
| Engine capacity of the car | Applicable premium rate |
| Up to 1000 cc | Rs.1850 |
| More than 1000cc but below 1500 cc | Rs.2863 |
| More than 1500 cc | Rs.7890 |
In case of comprehensive car insurance plans, the premiums are higher. These plans have two coverage components. One is the third party cover and the other is the own damage cover. Premium for the third party cover is fixed as per the above-mentioned table specified by the IRDAI. In case of own damage cover, the premium is calculated based on the Insured Declared Value of the car. Both the third party premium and the own damage premium are added together to calculate the premium of a comprehensive insurance policy. Being wider in scope of coverage, comprehensive car insurance plans are more expensive than third party liability plans.
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Engine capacity of the car
As seen earlier, the engine capacity of the car determines the third party premium rates. Thus, premiums are calculated taking into consideration the engine capacity of the car.
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The coverage features offered
Car insurance plans, across different companies, offer almost similar coverage features. However, there are some added coverage benefits which sets one policy apart from the other. These additional coverage features also affect the premium. For instance, many car insurance policies allow inbuilt towing facility in case the car breaks down in the middle of the road and is unable to be transported to the nearest garage. In other plans, you might find inbuilt roadside assistance cover. These additional inbuilt coverage benefits enhance the scope of cover and also the premium rate. Thus, the premium rate directly depends on the coverage features offered by a car insurance policy.
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The Insured Declared Value
As mentioned earlier, the Insured Declared Value is the amount of coverage offered by a car insurance plan. Different plans offer different IDVs. The IDV affects the premium calculation. A high IDV results in a high premium rate and vice versa.
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The make, model and variant of the car
The make, model and variant of the car determines the value of the car. A higher value car has a higher IDV and a higher amount of premium.
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Fuel type
Cars come in petrol or diesel variants. There are electronic cars too or cars fitted with bi-fuel kits. The type of fuel used by the car also determines the premium. Petrol cars are priced lower than their diesel counterparts. That is why their corresponding premium rates are also lower than the premiums charged for diesel cars.
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Place of registration
The place where the car is registered also affects the premiums charged. Premiums for metropolitan cities are higher than premiums charged in other cities of India. So, if the car is registered at Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai or Kolkata, the premium would be higher than for other cities.
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Age of the car
As the car ages, the Insured Declared Value reduces. As the IDV reduces, the premium goes down. So, premiums for older cars would be lower compared to premiums for new ones.
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Modifications done
If any additional modifications are done on the car which increases the value of the car, the IDV of the car insurance policy would increase. This increased IDV would also increase the premium rate.
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Add-ons selected
Add-ons are additional coverage benefits which are optional in nature. If the policyholder chooses add-ons, the premium rates increase. Each add-on comes with an additional premium which therefore affects the premium charged.
These are the factors which determine the premium which is charged under a car insurance policy. There are also ways to lower the amount of premium charged. If those ways are chosen by the policyholder, the car insurance premiums go down. Here are some of the ways of reducing the premium charged under car insurance policies –
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Use the no claim bonus discount
In a car insurance policy, if no claim is made in a policy year, the policy offers a discount which is called a no claim bonus discount. This discount can be used to reduce the renewal premium. The discount offered increases every year till it reaches a maximum of 50%. Here are the available discount rates –
| If no claim is made in the 1st policy year | 20% |
| If no claim is made in two successive years | 25% |
| If no claim is made in three successive years | 35% |
| If no claim is made in four successive years | 45% |
| If no claim is made in five successive years | 50% |
So, policyholders can earn a maximum discount of up to 50% if they don’t make a claim in five successive policy years. This discount reduces the premium rate when the policy is renewed
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Online discount
Many insurance companies also offer a discount if the car insurance policy is bought online. This is called an online discount and policyholders can earn a discount of 5% to 10% through this discount.
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Discount for safety features
If safety features are installed in the car, the chances of claims reduce. As the chances of claim reduce, it is beneficial for the insurance company. That is why, insurance companies offer a discount if the car is fitted with safety features. Gadgets like anti-theft devices, ABS mechanisms, etc. earn a premium discount.
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Discount for memberships
There are some recognised automobile associations. If the car owner becomes a member of such associations, the insurance company gives him a premium discount. For instance, if the car owner becomes a member of the Automobiles Association of India (AAI), there is a premium discount of 5% to 10% allowed to car owners. There are other associations too. So, policyholders can become a member of such institutions and enjoy premium discounts
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Discount for choosing voluntary excess
Every car insurance policy has a compulsory excess feature. Under this clause, a specified portion of the claim would be paid by the policyholder himself. There is also a voluntary excess clause. While compulsory excess is compulsory, voluntary excess is optional. The policyholder might choose a voluntary excess when buying or renewing his car insurance policy. If the policyholder chooses a voluntary excess, the insurance company’s claim liability goes down. That is why in such cases a premium discount is allowed.
Premium calculator
HDFC Ergo allows calculation of its car insurance policy’s premiums online. Interested customers can visit the company’s websites and calculate the premiums. The process is easy and simple and it allows customers to know the estimated premiums beforehand. To calculate the premiums online, customers can use the premium calculator available on HDFC Ergo’s website. The calculator requires some important details using which the premiums are calculated. The details which are required are as follows –
- The type of policy required – firstly, the policyholders are required to select the type of policy they want. Usually, premiums are calculated for comprehensive car insurance policies only. Third party premiums rates are already pre-determined and fixed by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority.
- The vehicle owner – different premiums are charged for private cars and commercial cars. So, the next information required would be whether the car is owned by an individual or by a corporate
- Registration date – the registration date of the car is important as it helps the calculator understand the age of the car
- Registration city – the location of the car’s registration also affects the premium rate. Thus, the city of registration is required
- Manufacturer name and vehicle model – the make, model and variant of the car determines the premium which is charged. So, the vehicle manufacturer’s name and model of the car are required
- Details of the last policy – this information is required if a policy is being renewed. In that case, details of the last policy would have to provided which would include the type of policy, coverage start date and the coverage end date
- Add-on covers required – HDFC ERGO provides a range of add-on covers with comprehensive car insurance policies. Here you can choose the different add-ons available. Each add-on would add to the premium cost as additional coverage features come at an additional premium
- Policyholder’s details – the last information which is required is the detail of the policyholder. This information is required so that the company’s executives could get in touch with then policyholder and help him to complete buying the car insurance policy. Any queries which the policyholder might have are also aimed to be solved by the company’s executives by getting in touch with the policyholder.
After all the details have been provided, the policyholder can click the button ‘Calculate Premium’. The calculator would use the details provided by the policyholder and calculate the premiums for the policyholder’s car.
There are separate calculators for calculating renewal premiums and for calculating premiums for the policy on a used car. In case of used cars there might be an existing car insurance policy or the policyholder might want to buy a fresh policy for the car. The calculator for used cars helps in calculating the premium for a fresh policy bought on a used car.
Benefits of using the calculator
The premium calculator has various benefits for the policyholder. One, it helps the policyholder understand the premium amount payable for his car insurance policy. By providing the premium details, the calculator helps the customers to get an estimate of the car insurance costs involved. Secondly, the calculator can also be used to adjust the premium amount. By choosing or deleting the add-ons, the customer can manipulate the premium amount.
Thirdly, since multiple calculators are available for calculating premiums of a used car and also for renewal of the policy, the calculator fulfils the different needs of car owners. Individuals can use the calculator which best suits their needs to find out the respective premium rates. Lastly, the calculator is easy to use.
Thus, it is suitable for individuals who are not very internet savvy to find out the rate of their car insurance policies. With so many benefits provided, HDFC Ergo’s car insurance premium calculator is definitely one of the best calculators for calculating car insurance premium rates.
HDFC Ergo Car Insurance Claim Process
Car insurance claims occur when the car meets with an accident and is damaged or when the car is stolen or when the car causes any type of injury to a third party. In each of these instances, the policyholder is supposed to follow a car insurance claim process to intimate and get his claim settled. The claim process is different for different types of claims and here are the different processes –
In case of damage suffered by the car only
- The policyholder should inform the insurance company immediately of the damage.
- The insurance company would provide the policyholder a claim reference number and the location of the nearest garage tied-up with the insurance company.
- The policyholder should take the car to the referred garage for cashless claim settlement. If a non-networked garage is chosen, the policyholder would have to bear the repair costs himself. Later, the insurance company would reimburse the costs incurred.
- In a cashless claim, after the car is taken to the garage, the insurer’s surveyor visits the garage to estimate the damages and prepare a claim report
- The surveyor submits the report and the policyholder is required to submit the claim form with all relevant documents
- The insurance company approves the claim after which repair works begin
- Once the car is repaired, the company settles the claim with the garage. The policyholder pays his part of the claim and gets delivery of the car
In case of damage to third party
- The policyholder should inform the insurance company immediately
- A police FIR should be filed
- The FIR, claim form and other relevant documents are submitted with the insurance company
- The claim is taken to the accident tribunal where the claim amount is decided
- The tribunal rules the claim amount and the insurance company pays the amount dictated
In case of theft
- The insurance company should be intimated and a FIR should be filed with the police
- The claim form should be filled and submitted
- If the police do not find the vehicle, they issue a non-traceable certificate
- This certificate is submitted to the insurance company and the company settles the claim
Documents required to file a claim for HDFC Ergo Car Insurance
A list of documents is required to be submitted in case of a car inusrance claim. The insurance company assesses these documents after which the claim is paid. if any document is missing, the claim might get delayed or disputed. The documents which are required for making a valid claim include the following –
- The duly filled in claim form
- Driving licence of the driver of the car
- FIR filed with police authorities in case of third party claims and if the car is stolen
- RC Book of the car which shows the details of the car
- Insurance certificate of the car showing the policy details
- PUC certificate of the car
Procedure to Renew HDFC Ergo Car Insurance Policy Online
HDFC Ergo’s car insurance policy can be renewed online through the company’s website. The policyholder just needs to visit then company’s website, select ‘car insurance’, select ‘Motor insurance renewal’ and provide the number of the expiring policy. After the number is provided the policyholder can see the policy details and make any changes required. After the policy details are modified to suit the policyholder’s interests, the policyholder can make payments online and renew the policy online.