Buying insurance online is always a mixed bag for people; there are pros and cons to it although in recent times, the pros far outweigh the cons. Buying an insurance policy is no longer restricted to those days of consulting with insurance agents or financial advisers who would showcase a bouquet of plans, explain all the features and then the customer would choose the plan that was most suitable based of course on advice and often personal relationships. Yet, most of us still buy insurance in the way mentioned above. A tiny fraction of people has started buying insurance online although the number is growing each and every day.
However, everyone might have different requirements when it comes to addressing queries and research before selecting the appropriate Insurance Plans.
So, before you decide to follow the cue, you need to know about some major pros and cons of buying an online insurance policy.
Know about the top 5 Advantages (Pros) of buying Insurance online:
- Lower Costs: The overall insurance cost does tend to dent our pockets sometimes and let’s face it; the amount payable for agents and intermediaries and also advertising costs does take up a small but significant chunk of the insurance cost paid offline. At the same time, buying online means the total absence of these factors and hence your insurance purchase cost is automatically lowered with comparatively lower premiums as well in most cases. When you purchase online, you directly purchase from the insurance company and hence the lower costs in some cases.
- Seamless Plan Comparison: While buying online, you can easily compare all insurance plans that you come across in a particular category easily, something that is not possible online. You can check out all the listed features, rates and then take a decision accordingly.
- More Convenience: Buying online is always more convenient. You can browse through insurance plans at home or work and purchase at your own convenient time without having to depend on anyone. There are several online chat functions at websites of leading insurance companies which often help you out with necessary guidance. The whole KYC procedure is now easier online while you can fill up your own details in a hassle-free manner instead of worrying about the agent getting them wrong.
- Seamless Documentation: You do not need to worry about the mountain of paperwork which usually accompanies insurance plans offline. You can easily upload documents electronically and verify them along with submitting application forms online and even making the payment online.
- Keeping mis-selling firmly at bay: Mis-selling is a major problem in the insurance space and buying online helps you prevent the same. This is a scenario where agents sell you plans with higher commissions but no real benefit for the specific needs that you have. However, when you are buying insurance online, you are dealing directly with the insurance company. Hence, the company will help you choose the right policy based on your needs since there is no agent’s commission involved here.
Know about top Disadvantages (Cons) of buying Insurance online:
- Mis-selling by third-parties: Several third-party insurance platforms and aggregators are there to help you with choosing the right plan and buying the same. However, the risk of mis-selling still exists since agents here may convince you to buy plans on which third parties earn higher commissions. Also, the cost factor once again comes into play here along with repeated hand-holding (maybe excessive) by agents.
- Lack of Proper Guidance: Buying yourself online may be problematic at times due to the lack of suitable guidance from a neutral party, i.e. you are buying from the insurer and the company will naturally guide you towards its suitable products. However, the need for an advisor or impartial financial guide is often felt when it comes to comparing insurance companies and features of their products.
- Rejection of Claims: Rejections of claims is something that every insurance customer dreads. However, insurance claims are sometimes rejected in online purchase cases where the customer may not have entered everything correctly or some information has been skipped due to lack of proper guidance. Buying from an experienced intermediary or advisor offline may help you deal better with these aspects.
Going by the pros and cons of buying insurance online, it would be fair to state that one should operate depending on his/her comfort level.
In spite of taking all precautions, we at times end up with insurance issues like a lapsed insurance policy, case settlement, claim recovery in case of insurance fraud, and much more. In case you too have a complaint related to your insurance policy; register it at https://www.insurancesamadhan.com/register