personal finance

How should I manage multiple health insurance policies after retirement?


I am 65 and live alone. My son lives abroad with his family. I have two health insurance policies of around Rs 3 lakh each. One of the policies is with United India Insurance that I bought in 1997 and have made no claims till date. The second one with ICICI Lombard was taken in 2005 and again no claims have been made. The premiums are increasing every year. The ICICI Lombard policy comes up for renewal in 2020, and I am planning not to extend it. How should I manage the policies?
Yashish Dahiya Co-Founder and CEO, Policybazaar.com
replies: The premium of your health insurance policy increases in tandem with your age. As you age, the probability of you falling ill becomes more and hence, there is an increase in premium to cover you adequately. If you have a family floater policy, then the sum insured of Rs 3 lakh may not be enough. Ideally, you should have one health insurance policy instead of two and a cover of Rs 10 lakh.

You can buy a top-up policy which costs less than a regular plan. If you feel your current health policy does not provide enough cover, you can port your policy to a different insurer. If your son and his family are living abroad, there is no point covering them under the local health insurance policy.

I am 32. I have a Rs 1 crore term plan. I am planning to get Rs 50 lakh- Rs 1 crore critical illness and accidental disability plan. Based on my income, insurers have asked me to get a Rs 2 crore policy. Do I need more insurance cover? Do I need critical illness and accidental disability cover too? Aren’t they a part of medical insurance?
Yashish Dahiya Co-Founder and CEO, Policybazaar.com
replies: Ideally, your term insurance cover should be 15-10 times your annual income. If your existing policy fulfills the need, don’t go for a separate term insurance plan. However, if your current term cover does not add up to 15-20 times your annual income, consider buying an additional term plan.

To cover yourself for critical illness and accidental disability, you could opt for individual policies. You can consider Future Generali’s Heart and Health Plan covering 59 critical illnesses and any good personal accident plan available in the market. It’s always advisable to have a basic health insurance policy. Most health insurance plans do not provide any fixed benefit on critical illness and accidental disability. They cover hospitalisation only.

You can consider ICICI Prudential Life Insurance’s iProtect Smart, HDFC Life Insurance’s Click2Protect or Max Life Insurance’s Smart Term Plan if you need additional term cover. Consider Religare Health Insurance’s NCB Super Premium, Max Bupa Health Insurance or Star Health Insurance’s Medi Classic for your health cover.





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