Theft of bikes has become a common occurrence in today’s age. Despite using safety features, the bikes are getting stolen, resulting in a considerable financial loss. If you have financed your bike through a loan, you would have to continue paying the loan even in case of theft and buying a new bike might not be affordable if the existing debt is not repaid. Can the loss be compensated? Yes, it can be through bike insurance policies. Read ahead to know more about bike insurance policies with respect to bike theft.
Coverage for theft in two-wheeler insurance plans
While many of you know that bike insurance policies cover damages suffered by the bike, what many don’t know is that theft of the bike is also covered if you have an extensive cover. If you have bought comprehensive two-wheeler insurance plans, loss of the bike through theft is covered under the policy.
What is the claim paid?
In case of theft, the insurance company pays you the Insured Declared Value (IDV) of the bike and the policy is terminated. The IDV is the value of your bike insurance policy and is calculated by subtracting the age-based depreciation from the market value of the bike. The claim takes care of a part of your financial loss.
Process of making a claim in case of theft
When your bike is stolen, here are the steps that you should follow to make a claim with your insurance company –
- You should inform the insurance company immediately about the theft of the bike
- A police FIR should be filed with the local police station of the area from where the bike is stolen
- You should fill in a claim form, attach the relevant documents and submit them to the insurance company
- The documents include the copy of your policy, police FIR, driving license, RC Book of the bike, etc.
- The police would try and locate your bike
- If the bike is not located, the police would issue a non-traceable certificate.
- You should submit this certificate to the insurance company to avail claim settlement. Based on the non-traceable report issued by the police authorities, the insurance company would pay the IDV and settle the claim under the policy.
Points to remember
- Coverage for bike thefts is available only in comprehensive two-wheeler insurance policies. If you have bought only third party insurance, you cannot make a claim for theft of your bike. Even if you make a claim in your third party insurance policy, the claim would be rejected.
- Coverage is available only if your policy is in force as on the date of theft of the bike. If the policy has lapsed and you did not go for bike insurance renewal before the theft happened, you would not get any claim settlement. Thus, it is necessary to renew your policy on time.
- Both set of keys of the bike would have to be submitted to the insurance company when making a theft claim. This would let the company know that the bike was not stolen because of your negligence in leaving the key on the bike in your absence. If you are unable to submit both the keys, the claim might be rejected due to negligence.
So, invest in a comprehensive bike insurance plan to get coverage for any possible theft of your bike. Also, ensure regular bike insurance renewal before the existing policy expires to enjoy continued coverage. If your bike is stolen, don’t panic. Inform the insurance company, follow the claim process and get a claim for the loss of your bike.