Many people get health insurance for themselves and their family as it can help during contingencies. However, most do not thoroughly look at the benefits and other terms of the policy before getting a policy. This might mean that for most policyholders, the insurance cover might be either redundant or insufficient to meet their needs. There might be policies that don’t cover the expenses that policyholders might need. There might be lack of transparency, ambiguous terms and delayed claim process for the health insurance policy. The cashless claim process for the health insurance policy needs to be seamless.
If you are unhappy with the services given by your insurance provider or the terms of your existing health insurance policy, you can move on to another health insurance plan, or you can even go for health insurance provided by another insurance provider. You don’t need to discontinue your existing health insurance policy. You can just port the policy. Here are all the details you need to know.
The Indian insurance industry’s regulatory authority, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India or IRDAI plays its part by helping disgruntled policyholders port their health insurance policy to another insurance provider.
What is health insurance porting?
Porting or switching to another health insurance policy is a way to start afresh without having to lose the money already invested or the benefits of your existing insurance policy. When you port your insurance plan, you are essentially transferring your existing cover to another provider. You may go for a new insurance policy provided by your present insurance company or by another insurance provider.
When you cancel the existing health insurance policy, you may lose the benefits of the policy such as waiting time already covered for pre-existing diseases or restoration benefits that you already have. When you port a health insurance policy, you don’t lose out on certain benefits that you have already earned under your existing policy.
When to port your health insurance policy?
Here are some of the key situations when you should consider porting your health insurance policy.
- When your present insurance provider is offering really bad services. This is especially if your claims aren’t settled in an easy and timely way
- If your financial situation has changed, the number of dependents in your family have increased or the present plan doesn’t suit your needs, you might need a better health insurance policy
- When the premiums, discounts and other benefits offered by a health insurance policy is better than your present policy, then, you can consider porting your health insurance policy.
How to port your health insurance policy?
You can port your health insurance policy when it is time to renew the policy. This way there won’t be any gaps in your health insurance coverage. However, there are times when porting may require more processing time, so a month’s grace period is given for porting your policy. If you think that the coverage might be discontinued by your present insurance provider, you can request them to extend your coverage till the porting is done. For this, you can make premium payments on a pro-rata basis for the period of extended coverage.
To port your health insurance policy, you need to inform your present health insurance company in writing. You need to clearly state the name of the new health insurance policy or company you will be moving to. This needs to be done at least 45 days before the renewal date for your present plan.
Once you fill the portability form, your new insurance provider will contact your present provider for details such as your insurance claims history. After all the information is verified by the new insurance provider and they are right for the new policy’s terms and conditions, the insurance company will provide you the health insurance policy.
Note that you can port between individual and family floater policies. The kind of insurance plan you own doesn’t matter. You can port from one policy to another if the policies cover the required needs. It doesn’t matter whether your present policy is with a private insurance provider, standalone provider or general insurance provider. You can port from one insurance provider to another.
Always remember that the end-goal of getting a health insurance policy is to keep yourself protected against financial adversities. So, go for the plan and provider that is right for your family.
