HDFC Ergo says its present bike policies do not exclude above 150cc bike

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After facing backlash on social media for denying a bike insurance claim stating that the insured vehicle was of above 150cc power, HDFC Ergo has now clarified that the terms and conditions of bike insurance have been revised. It further said the company has withdrawn the old product and its current policies do not have any “restriction in respect of cc of two-wheelers”.

A comprehensive motor insurance policy normally covers the owner-driver under personal accident insurance. But co-passenger, if any, are excluded from coverage. The co-passenger can be covered under add-on to the comprehensive policy.

Denying a death claim under personal accident coverage, HDFC Ergo had stated that injury sustained while riding a motorcycle above 150 cc engine is excluded from the coverage. “We would like to draw your attention. Your claim has been declined due to the below-mentioned reason which is the basis for disallowing the claim, an extract of which is mentioned below for your ready reference.

“As per the submitted documents, insured was dead on 19/04/2020 due to head injury. Insured was riding a 346 cc bike and as per policy terms and conditions claim is not payable under the general exclusion clause 8, for bodily injury sustained while or as a result of driving a motorcycle or motor scooter above 150 cc.”

The letter found its way to Twitter and a barrage of tweets followed flaying the company.

Now, another communication, purported to be from HDFC Ergo, is doing the rounds.

“… personal accident coverage being offered under any of our insurance products are in line with the market and are not restrictive in any manner including limited coverage for two-wheelers above 150 cc,” it said.

The earlier limitation of cubic capacity (CC) of bikes exclusion pertained to erstwhile market wordings and was market practice for a long time, according to the purported HDFC Ergo communication. “The company has withdrawn the old product last year, effective October 1, 2020, and our current PA wordings have no such exclusion…. Current PA wordings offered by us do not have any restriction in respect of cc of two-wheelers,” says the communication dated October 18.

Meanwhile, a report that appeared in moneycontrol.com quoted an HDFC Ergo spokesperson as saying, “The specific case being highlighted in social media is an old case and in fact, the claim is already paid to the customer. We would like to clarify that the particular exclusion which existed in all of our old products was removed in October 2020. We would also like to assure our existing and new customers that our PA (Personal Accident) policy covers all motorcycles regardless of their engine capacity (CC). We take pride in our industry-best claim settlement ratio and for the highest number of claims settled in the industry. We continue to strive to maintain this benchmark and evolve continuously to match customer needs and market changes.”