As a bike owner, an everyday commute through heavy traffic is probably a breeze for you. But, you also need to maintain the vehicle, avail of a suitable bike insurance policy to cover yourself financially against damages and losses, etc. Furthermore, you must protect your bike with at least a third-party insurance policy under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. And, remember to renew the coverage before the plan expires.
You need to frequently renew two-wheeler insurance with a coverage tenure of one year. And that’s why you need a multi-year two-wheeler insurance cover. Let’s look at what it is and how it can benefit an individual seeking bike insurance renewal.
What is a Multi-Year Two-Wheeler Insurance Policy?
Multi-year insurance coverage for bikes is the same as single-year plans, albeit offering long-term coverage benefits. This plan usually comes with a coverage tenure of up to three years, eliminating the need to renew it every year.
You can avail of this plan, available both online and offline, without much hassle. You can also transfer benefits, such as NCB, to the multi-year coverage plan for two-wheelers. The bonus is useful when you purchase or renew your bike insurance cover.
The primary objective of multi-year bike coverage is to reduce the lapsed policy ratio. In India, the number of bike owners is higher than any other vehicle type. And the percentage of uninsured bikes is remarkably high. So, these coverage options will allow two-wheeler owners to insure their vehicles for an extended period, thus helping reduce the overall uninsured rate.
Plus, insurance providers do not impose stringent rules related to one-time premium payments, making these policies affordable. Various other reasons command why a multi-year policy can be beneficial for two-wheeler owners in the long run. Here’s a look at some of them.
Reasons to Avail of a Multi-Year Bike Insurance Policy
- Increased savings on the policy purchase
The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India revises premium costs of mandatory third-party insurance. It thus impacts both third-party policies as well as comprehensive covers.
Purchasing your bike coverage or going for a bike insurance renewal every year will increase the premium significantly. A multi-year insurance cover for bikes, however, allows you to lock in the premium cost as it was in the first year. It provides coverage benefits for up to three years, thus helping save on insurance costs. It also offsets the effects of inflation on insurance premiums with a yearly hike in coverage costs. As a result, you pay less for a 3-year policy than you would with yearly renewals.
- Saves you from unnecessary hassles of yearly renewal
If you renew bike insurance cover yearly, you need to remember and track its expiry date. Many bike-owners avoid insurance since they cannot track the renewal dates.
A multi-year two-wheeler insurance cover, however, eliminates this hassle. You no longer need to worry about frequent policy renewals.
- Eliminates the risk of policy lapse for the coverage term
You must not let a two-wheeler insurance policy lapse and let your bike remain uninsured even for a day. You will have to go through a long and tedious process of purchasing a new insurance cover. If your bike remains uninsured, you will need to go through the entire inspection process and calculate the Insured Declared Value (IDV) from scratch. All of this can be extremely frustrating and time-taking.
A multi-year plan keeps such hassles out of your way and allows you to enjoy coverage benefits for up to three years without any hindrance.
- Eliminates the chances of unnecessary losses and penalties
According to the Motor Vehicles Act, you require a minimum of third-party insurance coverage to ride on Indian roads. So, riding an uninsured bike is a legal offence and may attract hefty fines. If you injure a third party or damage their vehicle or property, you may suffer high financial losses. A multi-year insurance cover for bikes eliminates these risks for an extended-term without you having to worry about its expiry.
- No compromise on NCB benefits
One of the most attractive benefits of bike insurance coverage, a No-Claim Bonus (NCB), is a discount you receive every year if you don’t claim. The NCB is a progressive benefit that can lead to a 50% discount on premium costs over the years. In this regard, multi-year plans have an added advantage.
In the case of single year covers, where NCB drops to zero even if you make a single claim, the benefits by far remain elusive. However, it is not the case with multi-year two-wheeler insurance plans. Even if you claim in the first year and not in the second year, you would be eligible for the NCB in the third year. Plus, even when the plan comes to an end and, you have not claimed in the final year, you can carry the NCB benefits to the renewed plan. Such benefits can be significantly high and result in remarkable savings.
You can cancel your multi-year two-wheeler insurance policy at any time without any hassle. All these benefits combined make a multi-year bike insurance cover much more beneficial than single-year policies.
