Quite simply, an insurance policy that has not been renewed before or by its expiry date is known as a lapsed or a ‘break-in’ policy.
An expired car policy is not viable for two very important reasons:
Reasons to Renew Your Expired Car Insurance
Do you require a little more convincing to renew your expired car insurance policy? Here are a few more reasons:
While there are instances when one can genuinely forget renewing the motor insurance premium, some vehicle owners intentionally do not renew the motor insurance policy of their vehicle to save a few hundred rupees on the premium. In the process, you expose yourself to financial liability in terms of any repairs that may be required. More importantly, any compensation to the family of the deceased involved in an accident becomes the responsibility of the vehicle owner. Thirdly, you also lose out on accumulated benefits (No-Claim Bonus).
lose out on accumulated benefits (No-Claim Bonus). NCB is the discount that you get on the vehicle's premiums for each year that you don't make a claim and can go as high as 50 per cent for a continuous track record of no claim. In case your vehicle remains uninsured for more than 90 days, you shall lose the accrued benefits of NCB. In the process, you also cannot transfer the NCB to the new vehicle if you were to purchase one. Premium for a new and higher end vehicle will be far more than an old vehicle. As such, losing on NCB benefits can lead to a lost opportunity in terms of paying lower insurance premium on your new car.
PROTECTION - Accidents are common and inevitable. If by chance you are involved in one, after your policy has expired, it means you'd have to shell out the money from your own pocket! Not a good idea, right?
LONGER RENEWAL PROCESS - The longer you wait, the harder it will be to find an insurer, and more so for older vehicles. Apart from that, you’ll also have to bear the charges for having your car surveyed. That’s a strict no-no.
NO CLAIM BONUS - Did you know a policy lapsed for more than 90 days could make you lose on your accrued NCB? Think of this way, the NCB raked up over 5 years could stack up to 50%. Imagine losing that? Not really.
Contact your insurance agent -
You should contact your agent at the earliest. An agent would have expertise in the matter, and might be able to reinstate your policy or even prevent such a situation from taking place where you have to pay a penalty.
The longer you wait, the harder it would be for you to find an insurance company willing to insure your car, especially if you have an old car. Worse still, you might have to pay higher premiums due to the unnecessary delay.
Avoid driving till you get a new policy -
If you drive your car with an expired policy, you would be putting yourself at further risk. You can never anticipate when you might be in an accident – major or minor, and in such an event, you would have to foot the bill for not only your own car but for that of any third party involved as well.
Keep your documents ready -
Once you have decided on the policy, you should contact the insurer to find out the documentation needed. You should keep your previous year’s policy handy, as well as a copy of the Registration Certificate.
You would also need to keep your vehicle details handy. These could include the city where your car is registered, the first registration date, the RTO Office address and the car company’s name and model number.
