Melvin Durai
While conducting research on insurance online, I came across a LinkedIn article by the insurance platform BimaPay. The article is titled, “5 Insurances Every Indian Should Have, Including You.” By “every Indian,” they do not actually mean “every Indian.” In their second paragraph, they are more specific: “No matter your age, once you gain financial independence, whether at 23 or 35, these 5 insurance policies are a must-have for you.” If you are wondering what “financial independence” means, it means that you are NOT financially dependent on your parents, siblings or rich uncle. Instead, you are financially dependent on your employer. BimaPay recommends that you purchase these five insurances: 1. Health insurance. This is important because private hospitals can be quite expensive. A single surgery or ICU stay in a world-class hospital can make your savings disappear faster than a world-class scam artist can. 2. Life insurance. If you’re the primary breadwinner in your family, life insurance ensures that if you happen to die, whether through illness or accident, your family will not miss you. They will get a large payment from the insurance company and spend their days vacationing in Goa. No, of course this isn’t true. Your family may vacation in New Zealand.
In all seriousness, life insurance relieves the financial burden on your family following your untimely (or timely) demise. They will still miss you. Even if you’re an abusive tyrant at home, your family will probably still miss you, especially when they’re throwing darts at your portrait on the wall. 3. Home insurance. If you own a home, you’d better have home insurance. There are a number of calamities that can damage or destroy your home, such as a fire, a cyclone or even a drunk driver mistaking your home for a McDonald’s drive-thru. Home insurance can protect not just the structure of your home, but also its contents, including expensive electronics and jewellery. If someone breaks into your home and steals your precious iPhone 14, guess what — you can now upgrade to iPhone 17. 4. Motor insurance. Motor insurance will cover you if the motor in your Pree Thi Mixie goes bad. Actually, you need to get mixie insurance for that. Motor insurance is for vehicles and will pay the cost of repairing or replacing your vehicle if it’s involved in an accident. The insurance will also pay for medical expenses and third-party liability, covering damage, injury or death to a third party. Just to clarify, if you buy motor insurance, you are the “first party,” your insurance company is the “second party,” and the idiot who caused the accident is the “third party.” 5. Critical illness insurance. If a serious illness, such as cancer or stroke, deprives you of your ability to continue working, critical illness insurance will give you a lump-sum payment to compensate for your lost earnings. But few people anticipate becoming critically ill.
Unfortunately, if you try to buy critical illness insurance after you’ve become critically ill, your insurance agent will be very critical of you. While those five types of insurance are important, you may also want to consider a few other kinds of insurance, such as these three: 1. Pet liability insurance. If you have a pet, you are liable for any harm that your pet causes. A ferocious dog that escapes from your home could, for example, cause one of your neighbours to suffer a heart attack. 2. Kidnapping insurance. This insurance will pay a ransom if you happen to be kidnapped. It might be worth purchasing if you’re famous, wealthy or live in an area where kidnappings are common. 3. Kidnapping insurance. Many parents count on their kids to become successful and provide financial support in their old age. You may want to get this insurance if your kid, instead of studying for exams, is always napping.
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