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Householder's Policy invalid if house
left unoccupied
For all those who thought that they had made a smart move
by relying on home insurance to cover their house 24/7 for
365 days of the year should do a reality check. There is a
caveat in what home insurance in India promises.
The caveat
A Householder's Policy is of two types. One is the standard
fire policy that compensates for any loss caused due to fire.
The other is a package is a cover for all the contents and
valuables of your house.
The surprise element in this policy is that
if you keep your house unoccupied for long, you have probably
not made enough arrangements that can insure the safety of
your home.
In case a house remains unoccupied for a
certain number of days, in spite of having Householder's insurance
cover, insurers will not cover the same. In simple terms,
if you and your family are out on a vacation that stretches
to over a month, and a burglary takes place in your home,
you may not be compensated for the loss at all.
One of the features that mark Home
Insurance in India is that the number of days that insurers
limit cover is different for each insurer. ICICI
Lombard General Insurance, for instance, does
not have provision for risks of property being unoccupied
for over 30 days while Bajaj
Allianz General Insurance provides such cover
with a limit of 120 days.
Get protection when you need it most
The
current insurance in home insurance in India draws attention
to a level of unanimity on what cannot be offered in such
situations. Insurers opine that a house left unoccupied for
long makes it deeply susceptible to chances of burglary and
several other risks like inviting tramps and unauthorized
occupants who may leave fires unattended. It is highly likely
that the fire is not detected when it is triggered off, and
by the time it is, it may get out of hand.
The condition is equally applicable for fire
and allied perils insurance, and some other insurance like
Shop insurance, Office Package Policy too.
Thankfully, one could get the exclusions
relaxed to a certain extent. As endorsed by high level executives
in insurance companies, perhaps the best way to get the insurance
to support you when your house is unoccupied is to inform
your insurance company at least one week in advance about
your vacation plans and obtain a confirmation stating that
your property is covered during the specified period of absence.
For a high value house worth 30 lakhs to Rs 40 lakhs, the
insurance company may even want to inspect the same before
you take your trip.
To satisfy your insurance company about the
serious precautions taken by you in this direction, assure
them that you have made certain arrangements like informing
your neighbors to pay a visit to your residence once in a
week or 10 days. Installing burglary and fire alarms and communicating
the same to your insurer will work in your favour.
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