The benefits of buying insurance online are unknown to no one but still, people are hesitant to buy insurance online. On the one hand, the rise of influencers has given growth to investments in urban India, but the people living in rural areas are still far behind it. Despite the IRDAI efforts to increase awareness regarding insurance and its importance the growth in the number of people opting for online insurance purchases is not up to the mark. Campaigns such as Bima Bemisaal are launched by government authorities to bring towards insurance.
In India, online transactions have taken place in recent years, so it is difficult for people to trust buying anything online. For ages buying insurance was an offline process, so adapting to a new process that is entirely digital sounds unreal to the older generation. Here in this article, we will throw light on the myths and some common misconceptions that ordinary people have regarding online insurance purchases
Busting the Myths Related to Buying Insurance Online
The shifting from the old-school offline insurance buying process to the new age digital paperless process is something new for everyone. At this moment people have some common concerns regarding buying insurance online. Their concerns distract them from the benefits and hustle-free, fast online process.
Buying online is a complex process
Just opposite to this belief, buying insurance online is a straightforward method. All you need to do is go to the online insurance providing websites and then choose the best policy for yourself and then simply buy it. This not only saves the time of the customers but also provides them ease of buying the insurance policy from their home with just a few clicks.
All the documents must be submitted online, and verification is done without any paperwork. All the major insurance companies like Kotak Mahindra Life Insurance, Reliance Health Insurance, Tata AIA Life Insurance, and HDFC Life Insurance provide insurance online.
One must be a Tech gig to Buy Insurance Online
No, it is not that only tech gigs can understand buying insurance online. Anyone with an electronic device like a computer, laptop, phone, tablet, etc, an internet connection, and a basic understanding of some terms related to insurance can buy insurance easily. It seems to be a difficult process, but it is not.
Buying Insurance Online is Costlier than Buying it Through Offline Agents
Contrary to this, buying insurance online helps you save a lot. Online you have many options available in just a few clicks. Apart from this, many online calculators are available that allow you to shortlist the best possible insurance plans for you.
Online you do not have any agents forcing and manipulating you to make a decision. It is entirely up to you which policy you want to buy. The cost of insurance agents and infrastructure cuts off while purchasing insurance online, so the cost saved is eventually passed on to the customers at reduced prices.
High Chances of Insurance Fraud
This is one of the most common fears that the people of India commonly have. Just because buying insurance is now involving an online transaction it does not mean it is a fraud. The online portals are just there to help you compare the plans. They do not sell insurance, they can only redirect the customer to the insurance company’s website. So buying insurance directly from the company's official website does not involve any chances of risk.
On the other hand, buying insurance from a local agent can be far riskier. It is difficult to know whether the agent is or is not the representative of the insurance company or not. They just want to sell the policy for profit without considering the customer’s requirements.
No One Will be There to Provide Personal Assistance
People have common perceptions that there would be no one to assist them in case some problem arises. In the offline process, they have the agent’s contact who will assist them. All the leading insurance companies provide online support to their customers.
Giving Your Personal Information on Online Portals Keeps Your Privacy at Risk
All the major online portals are certified with the SSL certificate. This makes sure your data is safe. The reason online portals ask for your personal information and preferences is that they can recommend options customized through their algorithms according to your needs. It is to make your user experience better.
Buying an Insurance Policy Online can Lead to Buying the Wrong Policy
For example, suppose you're looking forward to buying life insurance. While buying insurance online, you search best life insurance policy for yourself according to the filters that match your needs. However, while buying offline, agents will tend to sell the policy that will give them the most commission rather than thinking of the customer’s needs.
The Claim Settlement Process Becomes Difficult When You Buy Insurance Online
This is entirely not the case, the claim settlement process is somewhat dependent on the company that provides insurance. The claim settlement is almost the same, it does not depend on whether you buy it online or you buy it offline.
Buying Insurance Online Would End up you Missing the Profitable Schemes
The online insurance segment is very new in India. All the competitors in the market are having a price war in the market. It is the customer at the end who has the benefit from these business rivalries. So, going online and searching for insurance policies would give you a greater scope for discounts and benefits of added services. Such things are not available in the offline insurance segment.
What are the benefits of buying insurance online?
The use of technology has evolved the process of buying insurance. There are several benefits of buying insurance online. Let us take a close look at the benefits of purchasing insurance online.
- Searching becomes easy
For example, you have to buy health insurance. In the offline process, the agent will provide you with only those options in his portfolio. Whereas if you search online in a minute it will give you which is the best health insurance policy for you.
- Premiums are more affordable
When buying insurance online, the customer directly connects with the company. Therefore, the commissions of the agent and the distributors are saved. This saved value is eventually passed on to the customer through reduced premium prices. Apart from this, the price war between the online insurance companies brings down the prices even more. So, the online insurance premium is low comparatively.
- Online Method saves more time, efforts and is more convenient
You do not need to spend time waiting for the paperwork in offline insurance buying. When you can easily buy an insurance policy from your home at your convenience, why would anyone bother to buy it offline?
- Provides you with the security of the documents
There is a risk of losing head copies of the documents, and it is a very tiresome process of issuing copies of documents from the insurance company. But if you buy insurance online, you will always have soft copies of the insurance documents. You will have the soft copies even if you somehow lose the hard copy.
The process of buying is very convenient today. Going to an office to buy insurance is a thing of the past. When there are so many benefits of purchasing insurance online, it would be an unwise decision to engage yourself in the tiresome offline process.
