How do I read my car insurance policy schedule — IDV, add-ons and deductibles?

Your motor schedule tells you the vehicle's IDV, which add-ons you actually bought, the deductible and your No Claim Bonus; the policy wording explains how each is applied when you claim. Read them together: an add-on helps only if your schedule shows it, and figures such as depreciation rates come from your insurer's own wording, so check yours rather than a general table.

A private car package policy has separate parts: damage to your own vehicle, liability to other people, and personal accident cover for the owner-driver. The schedule shows what applies to you; the wording shows the rules. The examples on this page come from one insurer's standard private car wording and its Customer Information Sheet, to show how such documents read — your insurer's figures may differ.

Five things to find on your schedule

1. 1

   The IDV

   In a standard private car wording, the Insured's Declared Value is deemed to be the sum insured for your vehicle, fixed at the start of each policy period. In one insurer's documents it is based on the manufacturer's listed selling price adjusted for depreciation, and for vehicles over five years old or obsolete models it is set by agreement. It caps what a total-loss claim can pay — see what IDV means.^{[1, 2]}

2. 2

   The add-ons you bought

   Add-ons such as nil depreciation or return to invoice change a claim only if your policy lists them; a general insurance policy must state the endorsements and add-on covers attached to it. An add-on can carry its own limits — one insurer's nil depreciation cover applies for the specified number of times mentioned in the schedule.^{[2, 3]}

3. 3

   The deductible

   A deductible is the part of a claim you bear yourself. A general insurance policy must state any deductible that applies, and one standard wording refers to the deductible 'stated in the schedule'. The same insurer's CIS applies its compulsory deductible only to the own-damage section, at a higher amount for cars above 1500cc.^{[3, 1, 2]}

4. 4

   Your No Claim Bonus

   NCB is a discount on the own-damage premium for claim-free years. In one insurer's wording it is lost if the policy is not renewed within 90 days of expiry. No Claim Bonus explained covers wrong reductions.^[1]

5. 5

   The vehicle and the people covered

   Check the registration number, make, model and variant, and whether owner-driver personal accident cover is shown. One insurer's CIS asks you to report any error in vehicle details or NCB within 15 days of receiving the policy, for correction.^[2]

How the wording turns your schedule into a claim amount

For a total loss or constructive total loss, one standard wording pays the IDV, including accessories, less the value of the wreck, and treats the car as a constructive total loss when retrieval and repair would cost more than 75% of the IDV. For a partial loss it pays the actual and reasonable cost of repair or replacement, subject to depreciation on the parts replaced.^[1]

In that wording, depreciation on rubber, nylon and plastic parts, tyres, tubes, batteries and airbags is 50%, on fibreglass parts 30% and on glass nil; all other parts, including wooden parts, follow a schedule that rises with the vehicle's age. A nil depreciation add-on, where bought, removes that deduction for the claims it allows.^{[1, 2]}

Common misreadings

• A package policy still deducts depreciation: The standard wording above deducts depreciation on partial losses unless a nil depreciation add-on applies.^{[1, 2]}
• The IDV is not the on-road price: One insurer sells a return to invoice add-on precisely to pay the on-road price on a total loss or theft, which tells you the IDV alone may not.^[2]
• NCB belongs to the own-damage premium: In the wording above it is a discount on the own-damage section, not on third-party cover.^[1]
• Third-party claims follow a different route: Claims by others for injury or damage are settled through the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, according to one insurer's CIS. See own damage or third party.^[2]

ClaimAssure is an independent private platform. It is not an insurer, IRDAI, Bima Bharosa or the Insurance Ombudsman, it never files anything on your behalf, and it cannot promise any outcome. What it does is read your documents and show you what they say.

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