If you own a car in India, you must get car insurance online for the vehicle. And you must have at least third-party liability car insurance to save yourself from penalties and unforeseen financial losses in case of an accident. Comprehensive car insurance comes with better coverage and add-ons you can purchase to protect your car even better. Insuring your car is mandatory to comply with Indian traffic laws, and driving without a liability insurance policy can result in a challan payment. While purchasing car insurance online, you must also choose a nominee in your insurance application. In case of any unforeseen circumstances or the event of the death of the policyholder, the claim settlement or insurance benefits will be paid out to the nominee. The nominee is the authorised representative appointed by the policyholder when taking out the policy.
You have to follow some very simple steps to assign a nominee or change his/her name in case of car insurance policies. We will learn about the right procedure here!
Who is a Nominee for Your Car Insurance?
A nominee is an authorised person designated by the policyholder who will represent him/her to claim any compensation or car insurance claim settlement in the event of the policyholder’s death. When purchasing auto insurance, customers must provide the nominee’s name on the application form. The nominee is paid out the insurance benefits in two cases:
- In case the insured dies in an unfortunate accident.
- In case the policyholder passes away before the settlement of the pending claim.
Most nominees are spouses, children, parents, siblings, or a close family member. It is better if the legal heir and the nominee are the same people because, in a situation where the policyholder does not appoint any nominee in his car insurance application, the claim proceeds will automatically be given out to the legal heir of the policyholder. But this is a complicated process, so appointing a nominee while taking out a car insurance online plan is highly recommended.
How to Change the Nominee’s Name on Car Insurance Online Plans?
Let us take an example – you bought a car while you were unmarried, and your nominee was your brother or sister then. Now, after you get married, you would like to nominate your spouse in the car insurance nomination form. So, you can use an endorsement to make any changes or additions to the existing car insurance policy. The endorsement serves as proof of any changes initiated by the policyholder and confirmation of any agreed changes to your car insurance. This is also applied to changes regarding the policyholder's contact details, addresses, etc.
To change the nominee's name, you would first need to contact your insurer. You don’t have to visit the branch or contact a representative for that. You can simply visit its official website and make the required changes. However, approval from the car insurance company is mandatory. You may have to provide supporting documentation to implement car insurance online plan changes. However, this isn’t necessary for nominee name changes, as it is solely at the policyholder's discretion. It also won't affect the premium of your policy.
Step-by-Step Procedure to Change the Nominee on Your Car Insurance Online Plan
The process of renaming a nominee is very simple. All you have to do is write a verification application with the name of the new nominee to your insurance provider and mail it the same. If needed, the insurer may ask for some additional documents. Otherwise, for nominee selection or modification, no documentation is required.
- Step 1: You can either write an email to the insurance company requesting a nominee change or visit the insurance company's official website and log in using your details like policy number and phone number.
- Step 2: You can click on the claims tab or the edit tab, wherein you will find the option of nominee details.
- Step 3: You can select, edit and modify the nominee's name on the page.
- Step 4: After working on the edit nominee details, you simply need to save the changes made.
Previously, assigning, changing, or editing nominee details required submitting a change of nominee form, a copy of your motor insurance policy, and supporting documents. But this has changed with digital access to everything regarding car insurance online.
But Which Car Insurance Policy Allows Payments to the Nominee?
A normal car insurance policy won't cover you for accidental injuries or death. You need a personal accident cover added to your policy to get covered against the same. There you can add nominee who will receive payment in case you die, due to an accident, during the policy term.
Conclusion
Selecting a nominee for your car insurance online is extremely critical. You are authorising a person to represent you in the insurance, and in the event of any unfortunate incident, the nominee will claim the monetary benefits. So, you must choose the person very carefully. Normally, people pick dependents like spouses or children who can benefit from the financials involved in your absence. It is not mandatory to appoint a nominee but to avoid complex procedures and inconvenience; it is always better to appoint one in your car insurance online form. You can change the nominee anytime you want, following the simple procedure discussed above. By naming someone for your auto insurance, your legal heirs can easily get the benefits and coverage without having to prove that they are the legal transferees of your insurance.
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