Sumesh has recently purchased a life insurance policy with which he aimed to secure his family’s financial future. It has only been 10 days since he purchased the policy when he noticed something odd with the policy. Instead of the term of the policy being 40 years as directed by him, the term of the policy instead said 30 years. The insurance premium amount was also different from the one quoted by the insurance agent when he had given the estimated monthly premium that Sumesh had to pay. What could he do now, could he make changes in the policy term and other details, or could he get the policy completely canceled?
To answer these questions, the customers need to be aware of the free look period for insurance policies.
What is a free look period in insurance?
The term free look period in insurance refers to the period of 15 days after purchasing an insurance policy when the customer can make any changes to the policy terms and even get the policy canceled without much penalties. The free look period definition according to the IRDAI regulations clearly calls out that the free look period applies to all types of policies. The customers need to have a clear idea of what is free look period is so that they can take full advantage of this customer-friendly feature.
If you wish to understand, how can you make the most of the free look period in life insurance or health insurance plan, you need to pay attention to the below-mentioned tips.
- Ensure saving the date of delivery – The free look period is mostly 15 days and it starts on the day you receive the policy. You need to make sure that you have the envelope of the policy documents as it is since it will have the date of delivery. The other thing to keep into consideration is that you sign on the receipt and then make sure of checking the date.
- Provide correct contact information – As you purchase an insurance plan, you would be required to fill in your contact details in the application form available. Many times the agents propose the idea of giving their own phone numbers. Well, this is not the right practice, since the mandatory welcome call that the insurance company will make will then be answered by the agent and not you. In the welcome call, the insurer explains all the features of the policy in detail so that the policyholder is aware of all the nuances of the policy. When you get the call and answer it, you will get all the required information including the intimation about the free look period for health insurance or life insurance policy. If you find out that you have been cheated by the agent with false promises, you can take the step of immediate termination of the policy.
- Get the policy canceled only through the insurance provider – If you make up your mind to cancelation of your health insurance policy, you have to ensure of intimating the insurer in writing. If you choose oral intimation to the agent, it could just delay the process. There have been cases in which the agents chose to withhold the documents so that the free-look period gets over. All that you have to do is to call up the customer care of the insurance provider to inform them about your decision of canceling the policy. You also must visit the office of the insurance provider and submit the application for your policy cancellation. Many insurance companies put up cancellation forms on their respective websites. You can download the form, fill it in, and submit it accordingly. Once the form has been submitted, you must get a time-stamped receipt that works as an acknowledgment of your application.
- The refund process for ULIPs should be understood properly – If it is a ULIP, the units allocated will be rebought by the insurance provider at the net asset value on the very day on which your policy is This is due to the nature of the ULIP investment being linked to the market rates.
- A full refund of the premium is unlikely– In case of cancellation of the policy, the entire paid premium is not refunded by the insurance provider. Even if it is a free look cancellation, the insurance provider will refund the amount that you have paid only after deducting expenses incurred on stamp duty and medical tests. In case the risk cover has already come into effect, the proportionate risk premium for a certain period will be deducted by your insurer before your policy is canceled.
Even after you have lost the free look period, you can still take action against your insurer if you suspect them of mis-selling the insurance. You can approach the Insurance Samadhan website and seek valuable guidance on your insurance-related concerns.
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