BET you can’t wait for the monsoon to begin. Come monsoon, though, bet you will fret about driving your car through muck.

The last thing you want is your car to give up on you in the middle of nowhere. Save yourself the trauma. Do a couple of things:

1. Pamper your car with timely and regular maintenance.
2. Gift your car a comprehensive motor insurance. If your car stops working, you can always claim damages to get it back in order.

For now, let’s leave point 1 to your car mechanic, while we steer towards point 2.

Cool thing is, you can choose from different motor insurance policies based on your needs. What you need to do is understand these before you get one!

Policy A: Act Liability insurance
The Motor Tariff Act says it is mandatory to have this insurance if you own a vehicle. It is a penal offence not to have one.

Act Liability insurance refers to any injury caused to a third person on the road due to an accident. It covers:
a. Unlimited bodily injury
b. Property damage up to Rs 6,000
c. Unlimited liability towards injury of passengers of the car; and
d. Liability towards employees of the owner of the vehicle

Policy B: Optional Comprehensive Cover
This covers additional losses such as:
a. Loss or damage to your vehicle
b. Liability towards third party property above Rs 6,000
c. Personal accident benefit for the owner and passengers of the vehicle to the extent of sum assured.

Your needs are different from others!
A motor insurance policy covers different aspects of car damage.

Policies such as the Package policy offered by New India Assurance Co Ltd, covers damage due to floods, earthquakes, fire, etc. This policy also lets you take additional covers to extend the scope of items covered.

These add-ons cover any loss or damage to the accessories within your car such as air-conditioners and stereo systems.

Policies such as Bajaj Allianz’s comprehensive cover will reimburse costs involved in repairing or replacing the parts damaged.

Car beyond repair or stolen?
Not a pleasant thought, but it is important that you take some precaution.

If your vehicle is damaged beyond repair or if it has been stolen, the claim will be decided on the Insured's Declared Value (IDV). IDV is calculated on the current showroom price of the vehicle model, taking into account the depreciation rate set at the beginning of each policy period.

Here’s your key takeaway: Policy A is mandatory!
But make sure you get Policy B as well to spend less on the rainy days!

Photograph: Chipsomo Devilla/Getty

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