While you know that insuring your bike is important, the entire gamut of insurance policies, its benefits and varieties of coverage may seem a bit complicated at first. But it is actually quite simple if you know the basics well. There are essentially types of insurance policies:
1. Liability: This type of insurance policy is the cheapest and hardly does any good for you or your bike. It is really meant to take care of the other guy and his bike. In other words, it is the money which you pay to the guy for repairing his bike in case of an accident.
2. Collision: As the name is self-explanatory, this type of insurance policy can cover the repair costs of your bike, in case you meet with an accident.
3. Comprehensive: Again, the name is self-explanatory. It covers your bike from nearly any kind of mishap – including fire, theft, and vandalism and of course road accidents.
The most important point to remember when you buy an insurance policy is that every type of policy has its own limitations. For instance, a policy which is tagged with higher deductibles mean lower monthly premium but when you claim for damages, you spend more from your own pocket. The other important factor which you need to keep in mind is to check whether the policy entails the insurance company to pay you the price of the bike in case it is totaled or the company will pay the current depreciated value of the bike. This obviously makes a huge difference, especially when you have to shell out the money to buy your self a new bike or compromising with whatever you get in hand.
While there are numerous ways to reduce your premium amount, here are the following aspects which the insurance company will assess before it settles your claim:
• The size, capacity and brand of your bike.
• Your age
• Your past safety record on the road including history of previous accident claims, speeding tickets, etc.
• The purpose for which you use the bike – for joy rides or for work.
• The usage of the bike – what kind of mileage you cover in a year.
• Your place of residence.
• The fittings and accessories which you use on the bike. These things make an insurance company pay more, in case of claims.
Though these are the deciding factors with regard to the amount of premium you have to pay for your bike, there are many ways you can reduce the premium amount of your policy. For instance, pay off all your current debts on the bike at the earliest opportunity. When you take a loan from the bank, the lending institution needs some amount of insurance to cover the loan, but once you repay the loan to the full, the kind or type of insurance you buy for your bike subsequently is totally up to you, depending on how much risk you are willing to bear.
Another way to reduce your premium amount is to keep your road record clean. The more claims you file and the more number of traffic violation tickets you get, they will add up to your insurance premium amount and hike it.
Remember to tell your insurance agent that you always store away your bike during inclement weather. The less you put your bike on the road, lesser will be your insurance premium.
Lastly, maintain a good credit history. You may not know it, but more and more insurance companies are taking a closer look at the clients’ credit score to know more about the person’s reliability as well as sense of responsibility. Statistics prove that people with high credit rating submit fewer claims. This means profitability for the insurance companies.
Buying an insurance policy for your bike is in no way different from other insurance policies. You just have to make sure that you are getting what you truly require and that you understand what you are buying. A low premium need not necessarily mean a good policy.
