The ongoing pandemic has changed the lives of nearly everyone in the world. Whether it is medically or through other ways, nobody’s life has been untouched by the COVID-19 pandemic. Being both a major health concern and a blow to the economy, COVID-19 has governments of the world shaken up and India is no different.
People affected by the illness can have varying experiences due to many factors. Some patients only show mild symptoms that are similar to the common cold. These patients can be treated easily. On the other hand, many patients develop serious symptoms and require urgent hospitalization.
In both cases, patients who test positive for COVID-19 need medical care and a lot of support. Additionally, COVID-19 treatment can be expensive. With doctors still working with experimental treatments, the monetary aspect of it is very challenging. Fortunately, health insurance providers cover the costs of treatment. At the same time, term insurance plans help the insured’s family deal with their loved one’s death and offer financial security.
What Is COVID-19 Term Insurance?
A COVID-19 term insurance plan is a traditional term insurance plan that includes coverage against death due to the novel COVID-19.
Usually, term plans only offer coverage against ailments in case you purchase a critical illness rider. If you get diagnosed with any one of the major illnesses covered under the rider, the insurer pays out a lump sum corpus. These illnesses include cancer, stroke, heart disease, etc. But, with the steep rise in COVID-19 cases, many insurance providers have included death due to COVID-19 in their coverage.
Why Do You Need a Term Insurance Plan that covers COVID-19 deaths?
During recent times, the entire world has been dealing with multiple waves of cases spiking and causing major impacts on nearly everybody. As of today, nearly 4 lakh people have died due to COVID-19 in India. At such a time, you need to be both cautious and prepared. If, unfortunately, you end up testing positive for COVID-19, you would be glad to have bought a term insurance plan that covers COVID-19. Such an insurance policy with a COVID-19 life cover is a cost-effective option for covering your family against any unfortunate events.
How to Buy a Term Insurance Policy with COVID-19 Coverage?
IRDAI recently issued notices instructing insurers to develop and sell term insurance plans with the provision of financial coverage for death as a result of COVID-19. While most plans already covered deaths due to COVID-19, various insurance companies have come out to offer specific COVID-19 term insurance plans.
Here is how you can buy a COVID-19 term insurance plan:
- Visit the website of the insurance provider you prefer to buy from and select a plan according to your preferences.
- In addition to a COVID-19 insurance cover, look for features and term insurance benefits that suit your insurance requirements. If a plan offers all the things you wanted, use the premium calculator to know how much you would have to pay.
- Fill in your personal and all other types of details
- The final step is to complete your premium payment
- With this, you have successfully purchased a term policy with a COVID-19 cover
How to Make a Claim for COVID-19 Term Insurance?
The claim settlement process for COVID-19 term insurance is simple and can be understood in three steps. These include:
- Intimation
The first step of making a claim is to let your insurance provider know of the situation. Send a written communication to the insurance company. You can also initiate a claim and inform the insurer via online mode through their website or emails.
- Claim processing
Once your claim is received, your insurance company will examine the claim and complete all the necessary verifications. As part of this process, your family may have to submit extra documents like your COVID-19 diagnostic test result.
- Claim settlement
Once all the documents have been reviewed, it will take just a little time for your insurance provider to settle the claim.