Quick Loan Options Beyond Health Insurance To Overcome Medical Crisis

When Delna Mistry’s aged parents tested positive for Covid-19, she faced a severe money crunch. She had recently finished her studies and found a job with a new start-up. With a large student loan left to repay, the cost of medical treatment, hospitalization, and related expenses loomed threateningly over her family.  She discovered several quick loan options beyond insurance that could help her tide over this medical and financial crisis. As the Covid-19 pandemic rages on for the third year running, many families face bleak financial times ahead. The middle class in India has borne the brunt of the financial burden. Many didn’t have health insurance policies, and they had no means to fall back on.

Talking about the fact, that Covid-19 hit the market and hit the people mentally it was quite hard to fight at that time and the way lockdown was imposed in India. It was hard to survive during lockdown for common people, in the year 2020 during 1^st lockdown, about 10 crore middle-class families have gone below the poverty line.

But are there options beyond regular health insurance?

When you need quick loans and safe financial assistance to tide over the crisis, Whom to approach?

Here are ten useful ways for ‘Quick Loan Options’

1. Use your credit card: It’s fast and convenient and you can avail of 45 days to make interest-free payments. If you cannot pay the entire amount, you can convert to EMIs at no extra cost. A credit card is one of the easy and best ways to pay a bill, sometimes you get an extra cashback after paying from a credit card. Well, cashback is a secondary matter but yes after paying from a credit card, you will get enough to repay the bill.
2. Loan against credit card: Most credit card companies offer pre-approved loans. Though the interest rate is steep, this route is handy in a crunch. If you have several cards from different companies, compare the interest rates before taking the loan.
3. Pre-approved personal loans: Some banks offer them to select customers. You can approach a loan aggregator website or directly contact the bank. Nowadays there are a lot of private loan providers are available online, you need to just apply for a loan with some personal documents. The disbursal is instant through digital processing.

5. Government-based financial support schemes: These are available from different sources. Talk to a financial consultant to assess what best suits your needs, preferences, and budget. You can take instant top-ups on the home loan. If you’re eligible according to the bank’s terms, you can get instant disbursement. Apart from government schemes, some corporate leaders also provide financial help during the peak time of Covid-19.
6. Fintech lenders: This shouldn’t be your first choice because the interest rates are high. It’s a good choice if your credit rating is low and you find it difficult to get a loan elsewhere. Choose an option that provides the lowest foreclosure/interest rates.
7. Personal loan for Covid positive: If you share a good relationship with your bank, you can avail of a Covid-specific loan if it’s available in the bank’s portfolio. You could get between Rs 25,000-5 lakhs.
8. Loan against fixed deposit: When you have funds locked up in a fixed deposit, you could avail of a loan against them. This could result in a loss of interest accumulated, but the interest rates are lower, and they offer safer and more immediate financial assistance in times of need.
9. Gold loan, bullion pledge: Most Indian families have invested in gold in the form of jewelry or bullion. Several finance companies and banks offer loans if you pledge this resource. The interest rate is low, and you can redeem your gold once you have the funds. You will also get a loan against gold from every bank and apart from this your gold will also be safe, and there will be no pressure on you that you have to get rid of gold soon.
10. Loans against Investments: Your shares and debt and equity mutual funds are a good source of financial assistance in a crisis. You can apply for a loan against these securities without having to liquidate them. Ensure that you approach a trustworthy bank for this.
11. Advance on your EPF: You can withdraw funds from your Employee Provident Fund account if you have a membership. The maximum loan available is capped at whichever sum is lower of up to 6 months on your basic salary+dearness allowances or employee share with interest.

Conclusion

Quick loan options to overcome the medical crisis are the best option, but the thing is you have to be good enough in everything or you have to face rejection. Every option in the upper list demands a mortgage sometimes and some of the options demand a decent civil score to provide you a loan. Getting a loan is not easy.