Deciding the right amount of coverage to your health insurance policy is not always an easy task. Sometimes you may want to increase the coverage within a couple of years whereas other times, the coverage may be adequate for an extended period.
Whatever is your need, top up health insurance plans are an additional option for you to increase policy coverage. These top-up health covers can be either purchased as additional riders to your base health policy or even as a standalone plan.
Top-up policies come into picture only after crossing the deductible. A deductible is the threshold amount, which is required to be borne by you. So to sum it up, top-up plans with lower deductible should be preferred.
Here are the masterstrokes to make the most of your top-up health insurance policy:
#1 Estimate your coverage
Top-up covers are an excellent way to complement your existing health insurance policy. If you are someone who feels the coverage offered by your current policy is insufficient, a top-up plan can enhance the sum assured on an overall basis.
Moreover, these top-up plans can be useful to increase your policy coverage if you are already having a group insurance policy offered by your employer or a family health insurance policy. It can help easily extend coverage for your entire family using a top-up plan.
#2 Make a careful selection
After analysing your requirements, make a careful choice of top up health insurance plans. Say, for example, your hospitalisation bill amounts to ₹5 lakh. Now if you have a top-up policy of ₹5 lakhs with ₹3 lakhs as deductible, the difference of ₹2 lakhs will be insured by your base plan as per the terms and conditions of the chosen plan. A standard health insurance policy can be combined with a top-up plan to provide comprehensive coverage to include such different situations.
#3 Make a note of the deductible
While purchasing a top-up plan, it is crucial to take into account the deductible of your policy. A deductible is a percentage of the claim to be borne by you before your insurance cover kicks in. You must note when combining a standard health policy with a top-up plan, gaps in coverage will require you to pay for the medical expenses. To avoid these gaps, you must carefully look at the deductible of your top-up policy and the coverage offered by your base health insurance plan.
#4 Continue with one insurer
Availing a continued coverage from one insurer can benefit you. These benefits can be in the form of a waiver of waiting periods for your top-up plans as per the terms & conditions specified under your insurance cover. Among the various types of health insurance plan that you can purchase, a top-up plan from the same insurer will not only increase the coverage, but also provide added benefits.
#5 Tax benefits
Like other types of health insurance plans, top-up covers also enjoy tax benefits. The premiums are eligible for deduction under section 80D up to ₹25,000 and even more up to ₹50,000 for senior citizens.
Above are some of the tips that can help you in selecting the perfect top-up plan. Make use of these nifty tips to ensure all-round protection of your health insurance for you and your family.
