The key reason why a large section of people refrain from insurance in the country is the abject lack of awareness. One of the main issues with health insurance policies has been the complex legal jargon accompanied by a long list of terms and conditions.
However, all this is set to change soon. The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has proposed an initiative to simplify the Customer Information Sheet (CIS) for insurance policyholders.
So, what exactly is this CIS, and can it help you understand your policy better?
Typically, a CIS outlines key policy details, and it is given to a customer on purchasing or renewing a policy.
Earlier, reading a CIS involved going through extensive policy documents, which at times comprised more than 20-25 pages. As a result, this made it difficult for policyholders to understand and conveniently review their policy.
However, with access to the new CIS, a policyholder will have easy access to all the important policy information, such as the sum assured, policy coverage, exclusions, claim procedure, and more, in a quite basic and summarised manner.
Old versus the New CIS
Here’s how the new CIS is different from its earlier version. There are 13 similar categories in the new CIS as well. However, in the new CIS, these categories have been simplified to layman’s terms and are much easier to read and comprehend.
CIS specifies some of the crucial details, such as the sum insured, the amount for both the individual and family floater plans, the turnaround time for the claim settlement, and the weblinks of hospitals and their hotline numbers.
For an individual, finding all such details in the previous CIS was something of a tedious task. For example, if someone had to check the details of emergency ambulance coverage in the policy, then they would have to go up to Clause IV, which is on page 10 in the old CIS. However, in the case of the revised CIS, this information has been promptly mentioned on page 1 itself, in relatively simple terms.
Similarly, all other related information has been provided in a simple, straightforward, and uniform format to keep policyholders better informed and ensure a streamlined insurance experience.
As a policyholder, you must understand that it is important for you to understand your policy documents completely. Before going in for an insurance policy, one must check the relevant details such as coverage, benefits, exclusions, and claim procedure properly.
Rajiv is an independent editorial consultant for the last decade. Prior to this, he worked as a full-time journalist associated with various prominent print media houses. In his spare time, he loves to paint on canvas.
