All About Top Up, Riders and Add-ons
There are so many health insurance policy terms that stand similar in their meaning which is confusing!
Well well, this blog will clear all your misconceptions and confusion about one such set of terms - top up, riders and add-ons.
All sound quite the same, right? But are they? Let’s find out.
What are top-up plans?
Top ups are separate health policy plans that can be bought in isolation to your basic health insurance policy. It’s an insurance product that provides coverage in addition to your regular health policy.
It works the same way as your basic health plan and you have to pay a premium amount separately.
You can buy a top up of any insurance company - it may not be the same as your base policy provider. Sum insured too is up to your needs and can be utilized only when your claim amount is greater than the balance sum insured of your base policy.
Let’s talk about Add-ons & Riders
Add-ons and riders on the other hand mean the same thing. Add-ons are any optional terms or clauses that you get added to your base policy. When you opt for an add-on you get coverage over and above your base policy. These play a vital role in providing extra protection and coverage at a low additional premium.
While top up are independent of base plans, add-ons are not. Add-ons have to be included with the base plan. So, you must see if your base plan coverage is enough or not, according to which you can always look for relevant add-ons to enhance your coverage.
Many individuals prefer this as it’s a cost effective solution for a more comprehensive coverage.
As per IRDAI, the total premium of all riders and add-ons can’t be more than 30% of the original premium applicable to the base plan.
There are multiple kinds of add-ons and riders that cater to the different needs of policyholders. You can choose any, some or all of them - as per your requirements.
- Maternity Cover Rider: Most policies don’t cover maternity. When you add this rider to your policy, your maternity expenses get covered. Primarily, it might only cover expenses related to childbirth and not pre and post delivery expenses. Expenses of a new born baby might also be covered or not. It may also come with a sub-limit which is usually 50-75k in most policies.
- Critical Illness Rider: With this rider, when you’re diagnosed with any critical illness that’s listed in the policy clause like cancer, stroke, kidney failure, etc., you get a lump sum amount from insurance. This amount could be the sum assured for the rider or the cumulative treatment cost.
- Accidental Disability: With this add-on, the insured is covered for unintentional damages due to accident. If a policyholder is permanently, partially or temporarily disabled as a result of an accident, then your insurer will compensate you for the same. Compensation could be total or partial depending upon the severity of the injury or disability.
- Room Rent Waiver: Health policies mostly have a room rent limit. By adding the room rent waiver rider, you can extend your room rent limit or assure that there’s no restriction. This way you can choose a superior hospital room (subject to conditions like top category room can’t be availed) without paying any extra money.
- Hospital Cash Rider: Under this rider, the insured is provided with a daily cash allowance for all the days insured has been hospitalized. The hospitalization time should be more than 24 hours to receive the allowance.
Conclusion
Apart from the above mentioned add-ons/riders, there are some other add-ons available for a wider and more comprehensive coverage.
With add-ons such as global coverage, air ambulance, AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy) treatment, OPD care, etc., you can widen the scope of your policy coverage.
You should however always read the terms and conditions for any add-on very clearly. They usually come with a coverage limit, waiting period, extra premiums, exclusions, etc.
Now that you’re all clear about top ups, add-ons and riders - you can get any additional coverage that suits your needs.