In India, having basic insurance for your vehicle is mandatory by law. Moreover, getting insurance for your car gives you peace of mind as you enjoy financial protection from mishaps, if they occur. Therefore, you must always have adequate insurance coverage for your vehicle at all times.
Now, if you plan to sell your car before the insurance has expired, you might need to cancel the coverage. This situation might especially prove essential if you have a long-term car insurance plan that extends for a couple of years. Furthermore, you could also want to cancel your existing car insurance plan if you are unhappy with your present insurance company and have found a better one. Whatever be the reason for the cancellation, if you are doing it for the first time, you might be in need of some guidance. In this article, we wish to help you with a quick overview of what you need to know about cancelling your car insurance plan.
Steps for cancelling a car insurance policy
Here are the steps that are generally to be followed when cancelling a car insurance policy.
Inform the insurance company
Once you have decided to cancel your car insurance policy, you must call up your insurance company and inform them of your decision.
Complete the paperwork
Next, the insurer might require you to send a letter by email or sign some paperwork confirming your decision to cancel the policy. The insurance company may also need you to provide some documents as per their process.
Discuss the refund
Do not forget to speak to the insurance company about whether you are due for any refund due to premature cancellation of car insurance. If you have already paid the premium for the entire year, you will get some refund depending on how long you enjoyed coverage for while the policy was still active.
Receive your car insurance certificate
This certificate is necessary to be able to enjoy the ‘no-claim bonus’ from your next insurance provider. Make sure that you request your insurance company to send this certificate.
Once all these steps have been completed properly, your car insurance policy will get cancelled. The entire process may take around two weeks.
Do note that many insurance companies allow you to complete the process of car insurance cancellation online on their website. If you are familiar with transacting online, it makes sense to do things digitally to save yourself time and effort.
We hope this overview of the procedure of canceling your car insurance policy will help you. Do bear in mind that each insurance company might have a few additional steps to be followed as per their requirement so, make sure that you speak to them before initiating the cancellation process. Also, ensure that you buy a new car insurance policy before the old one is cancelled and no longer active. Your car must always be insured so that you stay financially secure and legally compliant. Take care and drive safely!