What to do if Health Insurance Policy Renewal Date is Missed?

Mr. Sharma, a 32-year-old businessman was having a health insurance policy for the past 4 years. He understood the importance of health insurance at an early stage of his life and took the decision of buying the best health insurance policy through proper analysis and understanding in his 20s. In between these 4 years, Mr. Sharma enjoyed the benefits of a health insurance policy and didn’t go through any hassle regarding his policy. Two days back when Mr.Sharma went for hernia surgery in a non-network hospital and when he filed a claim for reimbursement of his expenses, the insurance company informed him that his policy has lapsed due to failure in payment of premium before the renewal date. This came as a big shock for Mr. Sharma as he had to pay the whole medical expenses from his own pocket.

This is not only the case of Mr. Sharma as many people miss their health insurance renewal date which leads to the end of the coverage under the policy and the person becomes uninsured. Such gaps in the cover of health insurance can become a serious issue for you because medical emergencies can hit you at any point in your life without any notice.

Losses Because of Lapse of Health Insurance Policy

A lapse in a health insurance policy can lead to huge losses. You will be having no cover till the time you buy a new policy and the procedure to buy the new policy will be like the first time. You will have to go through the hassle of submitting documents, getting approval, medical test, etc. In addition to these, the following are the consequences that you will have to face due to the lapse of the health insurance policy.

Loss of No Claim Bonus- You should have accumulated a No Claim Bonus in your health insurance policy if you have been renewing your policy for a long period of time. Such No Claim Bonus leads to an increase in the sum assured, but the lapse of policy can lead to the loss of all the accumulated No Claim Bonus

Waiting period– All the health insurance policy comes with a waiting period that needs to be completed before availing of any benefit under the plan. On buying a new policy, the waiting period begins all over again which could become a big hurdle for you in the future. So if you get hospitalized just after buying the new policy, then you will not get any benefit under it.

Cover for pre-existing diseases- You have to wait for 2-4 years for getting the cover on pre-existing diseases in your health insurance policy and if you have passed the specified years then you are entitled to coverage of pre-existing diseases. But if your policy lapses and you go for buying a new policy, then you will again have to wait for 2-4years for getting cover for pre-existing diseases.

How do avoid the Lapse of Health Insurance Policy?

• You can set a reminder for the insurance renewal date so that you will not miss the premium payment and the losses due to the lapse of the health insurance policy.
• You can also go for ECS in which the premium amount is automatically deducted from your bank account before the renewal date.
• Even if you have missed the premium payment before the due date, still you can pay the premium within the grace period which will allow you to continue your policy without any loss.
• You can also opt for premium payment through ATMs which will save your time and money, thereby minimizing the chance of forgetting the premium payment before the due date.
• You can also avail yourself of the facility of availing reminders for premium payment through SMS and e-mails.

Ways to Revive Your Health Insurance Policy

Ordinary Revival- You don’t have to go through any medical checkup if you revive your policy within six months from the date of lapse of the policy. You will just have to pay the outstanding premium along with the interest.

Revival on Non-Medical Ground- If you decide to revive your policy on the non-medical ground, then the amount to be revived will be less than the promised limit of non-medical assurance, purchased by you.

Revival on Medical Grounds– You can opt for revival on medical grounds only if you have failed in both ordinary revival and revival on non-medical grounds.  The sum in this revival is decided only after going through a medical test.

It is better to follow the above-mentioned steps of avoiding lapse of health insurance because revival is not an ideal deal. By avoiding the lapse of your policy, you will be able to skip the hassle faced while reviving the policy and will be able to enjoy the benefits of your health insurance policy without any problem.

Loss of Lapse Health insurance Policy Renewal Date

If you forget to renew the policy due to any reason, then it can be very expensive for you, usually, people buy the policy and relax and try to live a stress-free life, and not renewing the policy is enough to increase your stress.

No access to No Claim Bonus – Usually when we buy a policy, we are told about the No Claim Bonus and in its lectures, it is proved as a beneficial service. The year, in which you do not claim, gets added to the plan as a bonus and this also affects the premium of the policy, but if you forget to renew the policy by mistake, then the number of years you did not claim the bonus was made. It all ends in a jiffy and the end of the no claim bonus means ‘loss due to breakage of water glasses served as a matter of courtesy before placement of an order for food’.

Cover for Pre-Existing Disease – Before buying a health policy, we have to submit our health report, if you already have a disease and you are willing to buy insurance, then in such a situation the insurance company provides you insurance with a waiting period for your pre-existing disease. Insurance covers pre-existing diseases only after the waiting period is over, but if you forget to renew the policy by mistake, then problems may increase for you. In such a situation, you will have to wait for the waiting period to end again after buying a new policy and it is said that ‘time is the most precious thing in this world and your one mistake can cost you dearly.

Conclusion

There is no doubt that, if you failed to renew the policy then you have to face a lot of problems and it’s also a financial loss for you. A good way to remember the renewal date policy is, just to save that particular date as a renewal date in your calendar option on your phone. A lapse in policy can be problematic for you and affect your image in terms of claim settlement.