Your four-wheeler is your saviour when it comes to travelling to different places. Your daily tasks that involve commuting are massively dependent on your car functioning properly. Apart from the proper maintenance of your car, you can also ensure that 4-wheeler insurance keeps your car and you safe from financial damages.

Why is car insurance important?

Car insurance protects your vehicle from unforeseen risks and damages from accidents, theft and natural causes like earthquakes and floods. But even otherwise, under the Motor Vehicles Act, getting your car insured is mandatory by law. Every car owner in the country should insure their car with a third-party policy that will protect them from third-party liabilities and not cause any financial stress.

Car owners in India have two choices when purchasing car insurance – third-party liability or a comprehensive insurance cover. A third-party plan protects you from losses and damages caused only to a third-party due to your car, whereas a comprehensive car insurance policy protects you from the damages caused to your vehicle as well as third-party liabilities.

Even though four-wheeler insurance is widely purchased online, it does not mean that the offline mode is completely redundant. While the mode of purchase is a matter of choice, you should be aware of how they are different from one another.

Purchasing car insurance offline:

When you buy your car insurance policy offline, you will need to physically visit the insurer’s office or meet an insurance agent for the next steps: 

• In this process, you will have to meet the insurance provider, fill out different forms and submit the appropriate documentation.
• The level of transparency involved in this process is low as there is a mediator involved. 
• The process of purchasing the plan from the offline source can be quite time-consuming. Starting from your meeting with the insurer to discussing the features of their plans, gathering and submitting your documents and making the payment may take up to a few days. 
• Buying a four-wheeler insurance policy offline is slightly more expensive than buying it online as there are overhead and labour costs involved.
• The probability of being influenced into buying a specific plan by an insurance agent is higher through the offline process since you do not have a second opinion.

However, it is important to note that many people who are not comfortable with technology or find online payments to be unsafe opt for purchasing insurance policies offline.

Comparing different policies offline becomes a bit difficult. Even if an insurance agent offers you multiple options, the process may be time-consuming.

• You will have to rely on your insurance agent or the customer support staff if you face any issues when purchasing the plan.
• Since the process is a manual one, the claim settlement process can be quite long. The renewal of the policy may also take up a considerable amount of your time.  

Purchasing car insurance online:

When you opt to purchase car insurance online, the purchase will occur either on the website or through mobile applications.

• The process of buying the insurance online includes going to the website of different insurance providers, comparing various plans, selecting a suitable one and buying it by making the purchase online.
• Purchasing car insurance online provides a decent amount of transparency, as there is no mediator involved in the process. You can gather all the information, learn about their features of different insurance policies and make an informed decision. 
• The purchase of the policy online is a fast and smooth process. You do not have to book any appointments. You can insure the car at any time by visiting the website, as there are no closing hours on the website. 
• Since there are no mediators involved in the online process, there are no commission costs involved. This results in low-cost insurance plans. 
• You will not have to buy something that you do not wish to purchase, as an agent won’t influence you. You are entirely in control of making the decisions through the process. 
• Comparing different plans becomes extremely easy online. You can make use of the car insurance calculator to understand better how a plan will suit you. 
• With technological advancements, various insurers have upgraded their website to assist you better. These websites hold different features like blog posts, chatbots and website content to resolve any queries you may have. 
• It is easier to find out online if an insurance provider has a smooth and straightforward claim-settlement process. 
• Online renewal of vehicle insurance can be smoother than the policy purchase itself. If you’re renewing the policy with the same insurer, they will have all of your data. This will make the process extremely easy. 

Conclusion

While both the processes will help you insure your car, it is better to weigh out the pros and cons before you plan to go ahead with the process. If you’re not well versed with the technological webspace, then the offline purchase may work better for you. If you spend countless hours on the internet and know how to use it to your advantage, then an online purchase could be better suited for you. 

Jeff Morgan

Jeff Morgan is currently associated with NetworksGrid as a technical content writer. Through his long years of experience in the IT industry, he has mastered the art of writing quality, engaging and unique content related to IT solutions used by businesses. Topics like network security, managed firewall services, managed IT services and cloud computing like Best QuickBooks desktop hosting are his favorite.