As a car owner, you are aware that you need at least third party liabilities insurance to operate your vehicle in India. However, you may also choose to upgrade your coverage by buying comprehensive car insurance. To ensure that car owners stay under the protection of insurance coverage for longer, IRDAI has made it mandatory that all third–party car insurance policies be issued for a minimum duration of three years. This long term car insurance coverage can prove beneficial to you in many ways. To gain a better understanding, this article will take you through the benefits of long term car insurance. But first, let’s understand what long term car insurance is.

A long term car insurance plan is one that covers you for a period that lasts more than one policy year. As stated above, it is mandatory for insurers to offer long term third party insurance coverage for cars and bikes. However, they also do offer long term comprehensive coverage which you can buy at your discretion.

Buying long term car insurance offers you many benefits, such as:

• Hassle free coverage

  With a long term plan, you don’t have to worry about doing yearly renewals on your car insurance policy. You can drive worry–free, knowing that you are covered for a few years. This saves you from the hassles of annual renewals and protects you from mistaken lapses in coverage continuity which can see you incur fines.

• Discounts on insurance premium

  The third–party car insurance rates are fixed by the IRDAI and need to be standard across. However, comprehensive car insurance plans come at varied premiums, depending on the coverage offered by the insurer. Generally, you may see yourself getting additional discounts on your car insurance premium if you opt in for a multiyear policy. This way, you can save money and drive with peace of mind.

• Lock in current rates

  The rates for car insurance premiums for third party coverage get revised by the IRDAI. Your own comprehensive car insurance premiums too might increase each year. With a long term car insurance plan, you can lock in the current premium that you pay for the next couple of years. This benefit won’t apply if you opt for annual renewal of your car insurance plan.

• Improved no claim bonus NCB

  Most motorists are unaware that the NCB given on a long term car insurance plan is much better than the NCB on a plan with annual renewal. Since the NCB can give you large discounts on your premium, this is a great reason to opt for multi–year coverage.

As we can see, there are many benefits to having a long term car insurance plan. While the premium might seem larger to pay, it actually costs less in the long run. For any further queries, do reach out to your insurance provider. Insurance companies are known to offer complete details on their websites about the coverage that their plans entail.