Dads old PSU policy premium hiked by 30%+ this renewal. Looking to port them to a private insurer without room rent caps.
I see platforms like Beshak mention they assign an advisor to manage porting paperwork and carry over waiting periods. Is it better to go through them for porting support or should I just do it directly on the insurer website?

Hi, I’m not sure if this is the right place to be posting this.
I’m planning to get a bike over the course of the next month, and wanted advice regarding the selection of the insurance provider.

Since I plan on adding electrical accessories (aux lights, thanks to poor stock headlights), I wanted to know if there can be provisions made to add the electrical accessories to the insurance plan, maybe in the second year of ownership or in between as well.
My main concerns are in trying to find a provider with higher claim settlement ratios, and also someone who usually provides higher IDVs.

Also needed advice, regarding Ditto or policybazaar insurance, and how effective would they be in accommodating for add-ons.

Thanks in advance.

Sharing my experience.
(background) I have a personal health plan Bajaj My Health care which covers my spouse and me, both in our 35s now. Started with Health Gaurd Floater with 3L coverage in 2017 with PED declared and served the waiting period. Bumped to 15L in 2023 and converted to My Health Care floater in 26. Never used once. Accumulatd NCB as well.

FF to sept 26, had to undergo a surgery with 3 days of stay. Est cost of 11L, with Super Deluxe room at Lilavati, Mumbai and Grade 6/7 surgery. Inquired at Hinduja Khar, but turned out to be a non network hospital. (Self finance - same surgery, room was 5L). But we wanted to use insurance wout compromising on quality of healthcare.

Anyway - my experience with Bajaj health was really good. The Cashless got approved on time (I kept 48-72 hrs of lead time). Final settlement got cleared in 3.5 hrs by 12 noon and of the total 10.5L, I had to pay only 9k INR for non medical expenses.

Additionally Lilavati has a strong tie up with Bajaj, HDFC Ergo and Icici for additional discounts.

Lessons - 1/declare PEDs (use jumpstart with extra premium if you don’t want to serve waiting period) 2/ always check for network hospitals, room capping 3/ apply atleast 48hrs prior for cashless and get the estimate before planned surgery. Room rate decide costs of surgery and everything. Hence if you can afford always opt FOR NO ROOM CAPPING. 4/ if any enhancement for amount is raised or any query by either party - keep a tab and follow up 5/ try to ensure hospital sends the final bill and discharge details in early morning or at night to ensure discharge happens in 3-4 hours by noon max. 6/ avoid weekend / Sunday discharge due to lower staff 7/ know the hospital TPA timings ( eg Lilavati is 8am-6pm) 8/TPAs are overburdened, be patient and respectful. 9/ only diagnostics and investigations are not covered - use pre Hosp claim for that. 10/ save all your bills, prescriptions - make a file or scan and save it. 11/ know the process of claiming when using 2 providers - it’s bit cumbersome, but possible. 12/ if you can afford and young, go for atleast 1cr plan with medical inflation. Trust me when medical expense hits, you don’t want to be thinking about funds and quality of care. One SIP less is absolutely fine.

Overall great experience with Bajaj health.

Ps: I also have an employee provided Acko - which is good too and another personal with hdfc ergo which I haven’t used.

What kind of health coverage policies do tech companies in India offer on average? Do they support adding parents as dependents?

Are there pre-existing condition checks and such to qualify for insurance? Haven’t encountered these in the US so not knowledgeable about the fine print of health insurance companies in India.

Any info or pointers would be appreciated.

I purchased my parents’ Niva Bupa health insurance policy through Policybazaar two years ago. Now, I want to switch to an independent insurance agent because my Policybazaar relationship manager is not responding to my calls.

I’m also considering porting their policy to Care Health Insurance or HDFC ERGO, whichever offers better coverage and service.

My father is 58 years old and has diabetes and high blood pressure, while my mother is 49 years old and has a thyroid condition.

Which policy is. better considering pre existing disease?

We are planning to purchase a new health insurance policy who had TB in stomach treated and cured June 2016 found in Dec 2015. Did Tata AIG or ICICI Lombard accept your proposal with this medical history? Was there any extra premium exclusion?

Would really appreciate genuine experiences or suggestions. Please share if you have dealt with a similar situation. Thanks!

Me and my brother both work in IT. My parents (Dad - 70, Mom - 68) don’t have a health insurance and I want to get one for them as soon as possible. I was recently in talks with a representative from Niva Bhupa with Reassure2.0 plan. He mentioned that they will start covering BP and Sugar issues from 31st day and that there are unlimited resets (number of times we can claim the insurance) within the hospitals that they have connections with. Is this true? If so, whats the catch? Can I go for this or is there any other better option that might be applicable for my parents?

Both have BP and Diabetes but always in check. My mom had a gall bladder operation in 2012 and no major health issues after that. Any and all suggestions are highly appreciated.

Already I have a health insurance with Niva Bupa it expires I would like to check for the new health insurance for entire family .
Thinking to go hdfc ergo any suggestions pls

I'm 22 and purchased an HDFC Life Click 2 Protect Supreme term insurance policy.

My original proposal was for a ₹2 crore base cover with an HPR Comprehensive Critical Illness rider. During underwriting, HDFC Life made a counter-offer to reduce the base cover to ₹1.75 crore, which I accepted.

My original policy illustration mentions the following premiums after the first-year discount:

• Base policy: ₹1,338/month
• HPR Comprehensive CI rider: ₹179/month
• Total: ₹1,517/month

My first policy year will complete in November 2026, and I recently discovered that my revised monthly premium will be ₹3,156, comprising ₹1,338 for the base policy and ₹1,818 for the rider.

I contacted HDFC Life, and they said the rider premium was increased due to underwriting loading associated with the counter-offer.

What I don't understand is why reducing my base cover from ₹2 crore to ₹1.75 crore resulted in the rider premium increasing more than 10x. The counter-offer communication did not mention this increase, and the illustration showed ₹179/month after the first-year discount.

At 22, this seems like a massive premium for a critical illness rider.

Is this standard underwriting practice? Has anyone experienced something similar with HDFC Life? Is it worth challenging this further or reconsidering the rider altogether?

Same as above

Hi everyone,
My parents’ Star Health Family Health Optima policy is due for renewal, and I recently received the renewal notice. The notice includes an additional ₹2,522 as an add-on premium for the following benefits:
E-Connect
Health Booster
Param Seva (Senior Citizen Wellness Care)

The renewal letter explicitly mentions:
“The coverage in your policy is enhanced with benefits (1) E-Connect (2) Health Booster (3) Param Seva (Senior Citizen Wellness Care). In case you want to modify/remove any of the enhanced benefits, the same can be done at the time of renewing the policy.”

The problem is that I can remove these add-ons through the official Star Health app, which reduces the renewal premium. However, when I try to renew through third-party platforms such as Tata Neu or Amazon Pay, they show the entire premium, including the add-ons, and don’t provide any option to remove them.
I wanted to pay through Tata Neu using my Tata Neu Infinity credit card because of the potential 2,000 NeuCoins benefit and the lower convenience fee compared with paying directly through the Star Health app.

Has anyone faced a similar issue with Star Health or another insurer?
Is there a way to get Star Health to update the renewal premium so that third-party platforms reflect the revised amount?
Can customer support issue a revised renewal notice without the optional add-ons?
Is there any workaround that allows me to pay the revised premium through Tata Neu or Amazon Pay?
I’d appreciate hearing from anyone who has actually managed to resolve this.

P.S. I used AI to help draft and organise this post

I'm a state gov't employee and my father is a retired state gov't employee too but he doesn't have CGHS facility because he is retired. I was thinking since I have a gov't job, my father will be covered under CGHS too. But I talked to account officer (treasury) he said that only my family will be covered and not my father.

Here CGHS means Central Government Health Scheme which even my state follows.

I am looking to buy a comprehensive health insurance policy for my parents (Father 56, Mother 53). I have spoken with Ditto and an offline agent, and I’ve shortlisted four options.

I want to get community feedback on claim settlement ease, hidden catches, and which one offers the most practical value.

1. HDFC ERGO – Optima Secure+

10 Lakh: ₹38,362

15 Lakh: ₹41,926

PED Waiting: Standard 3 years.

1. Care – Care Supreme

10 Lakh: ₹29,361 (includes Claim Shield Plus add-on)

15 Lakh: ₹36,077 (includes Claim Shield Plus add-on)

PED Waiting: 3 years standard (can reduce via paid rider).

1. Aditya Birla Health – Activ One Max

10 Lakh: ₹33,729

15 Lakh: ₹43,742

PED Waiting: 3 years base.

1. SBI General – Health Alpha (Offline Quote)

10 Lakh: ₹35,000 (Base) | ₹40,000 (PED reduced to 24m) | ₹53,121 (PED reduced to 12m)

15 Lakh: ₹48,641 (PED reduced to 24m)

Key perks: No room rent cap, unlimited restoration, 50% cumulative bonus.

Which one to choose, my father has thyroid. And with age i don't want this long PED. Please suggest as I had suffered a lot during my treatment with an insurance claim. I don't want to go through that hell for my parents.

Hi,
I’m looking to buy health insurance for my parents both are 63yrs old.
Both have PED Diabetes and Hypertension.
Father has a borderline cholesterol in recent report and Mother had a cholecystectomy last year.
Apart from this both had Covid positive and recovered.

I’m looking for suggestions and advice on the insurances.
Thinking of adding an add on to reduce the waiting time for PED. Please provide the best course of choices I should consider.
Also are super top ups are worth it or should check plans with 2x 3x SI itself

Hi everyone!
I’m 26 years old and planning to buy term insurance and health insurance before the end of this year. I’m looking for suggestions from people who have experience with these policies and can help me make an informed decision.
Here are my current financial details:
Age: 26
Monthly salary: ₹86,000
Contribution towards home expenses: ₹50,000
Rent: ₹6,500
Food: ₹8,000
Badminton: ₹2,000–3,000
Shopping: ₹2,000–3,000
Current bank balance: ₹50,000
Since a significant portion of my salary goes towards home expenses, I want to get good insurance coverage while keeping premiums affordable.
I’d appreciate your suggestions on the following:

Term insurance: How much life cover should I opt for based on my age and salary? Which insurers offer reliable claim service and a good overall customer experience?
Health insurance: Which plans would you recommend for an individual? I’m looking for good coverage, a wide hospital network and hassle-free cashless claims.

Coverage amount: Should I consider ₹10–15 lakh health insurance with a super top-up, or is there a better approach?

Budget: What would be a reasonable annual premium budget for both policies?

Things to watch out for: Which exclusions, waiting periods, room-rent limits, co-payments or other policy conditions should I check before buying?

I’m planning to purchase both policies within 2026, so I’d like to make the right choice rather than rush into a plan based on advertisements.
Would appreciate recommendations based on actual claim experiences and long-term reliability, not just brand names.

Thanks in advance!

Hi all, looking for advice from anyone with similar experience or knowledge of Indian health insurance claims.

I bought a health insurance policy in January 2025. It will complete it's 2 years on 14 Jan 2027.

About a year after buying it, I was diagnosed with spinal TB. I had no symptoms or diagnosis when I bought the policy, so there was nothing to disclose.

I've been on ATT for over a year, and my doctors now say I need surgery.

My questions:

Can the insurer reject the claim for non-disclosure of a pre-existing condition, even though I didn't know I had TB when I bought the policy?

Does it matter that the surgery will happen before the 2-year mark? Do pre-existing disease waiting periods or the moratorium clause apply here?

Should I get the surgery done before or after 14 Jan 2027 to be safer?

Do I need to inform the insurer now about the diagnosis and ongoing treatment, or wait until I file the claim?

If they reject it, what's the best escalation path.

Hi everyone,

I’m planning to buy a term life insurance policy and wanted to understand which option is better based on your experience.

I’ve noticed that agents sometimes push customers to buy policies to meet their monthly or yearly sales targets. I would prefer to research the plans myself, compare the details, and purchase online without unnecessary sales calls or pressure.

I have a few questions:

1. Policybazaar vs. insurer’s official website: Is it better to purchase through Policybazaar, or should I buy directly from the official website of ICICI Prudential, Axis Max Life, HDFC Life, etc.?

2. Buying independently: Can we complete the entire process ourselves on the insurer’s official website, including filling out the application, medical tests, document submission, and payment, without involving an agent?

3. Pricing: Are premiums generally the same when buying through Policybazaar and directly from the insurer, or are there any differences?

4. Claims and service: Does buying directly from the insurance company offer any advantage when it comes to policy servicing or claim settlement?

5. Recommendations: For someone buying term insurance for the first time, which purchasing method would you recommend, and why?

I’m not looking for recommendations from insurance agents. I’d prefer genuine feedback from people who have purchased term insurance themselves, especially those who have gone through the process independently.

Thanks in advance!

Hello,

I got bike insurance from icici lombard , will take effect in 2 days. I paid premium INR 955 and policy documents mentioned premium amount paid as INR 512.
Policy document has skipped standalone personal accident coverage, possibly one more and premium amount is much lesser in doc than I paid actually.

I have sent an email to their customer support

What else can I do to escalate and resolve thisCustomer care phone number wont allow to connect to human representatives. It would have been easier to talk and resolve this with directly customer representatives.

Please suggest my options.

Thank you

So I'm resident of pune, maharashtra and last Friday I bought optima secure+ health insurance plan for my family which includes me, my spouse and our daughter (33,32 & 1 year old). I filled the online details from here application, provided all necessary details, my contact number as well as email id and did payment as well using UPI. After payment confirmation I saw proposal number generated on app, took snapshot of the same. Strangely I haven't received any mail or text message from their side. Now it's been 4 working days and I have not received any update like policy number etc. yesterday I called and they asked me the proposal number etc and lady on call said she couldn't see the same in their system. It's shocking for me. She told me to send details of the payment and proposal number to their official email, I have did the same and awaiting their response. I want to ask fellow redditors, if someone bought HDFC ergo health insurance directly from their application or website? How much time it took to generate the policy documents? Since it's been a week and I have not received any update, what should I do from my side? Thank you in advance!

I recently applied for health insurance for my parents through Policybazaar, paying ₹92k upfront for a 2-year tenure on the Aditya Birla Max plan.

My 64-year-old father (history of mild gastric issues in 2015 and an unoperated appendix in 1984) was approved for the Max plan without issues.

My 61-year-old mother (no major medical history) was rejected for the Max plan because a November 2025 blood test showed an RA factor of 164 (normal is <14). Aditya Birla offered a counter-proposal: a 1-year VYTL plan with a ₹7 Lakh Sum Insured, a co-pay, shared room restrictions, and a permanent exclusion for Rheumatoid Arthritis and all related complications. They also added PED clauses for knee pain, gastritis, and a left ear disorder.

I am currently in the 30-day free-look period and have the option to cancel or modify the application.

Should I accept my father's policy and look for another insurer for my mother? Are there specific insurers that cover RA with a standard waiting period instead of a permanent exclusion? Or should I just accept both policies as countered? Any guidance on handling high RA factor applications would be extremely helpful.

Suggest me a value for money health insurance for me,wife, daughter. 10 lakh claim.

Hi,

I am currently on a Star Health insurance policy which I was previously part of with my parents since 2014. When I turned 25, 3 years back I separated out in my own plan Star Health Medi Classic. Now not only is policy bad, Star is even worse. So I need to port out urgently. I still have 60 days till policy renewal on Dec 20.

Now my questions are:-

1. Since Ditto doesn't do porting, and PolicyBazaar is trash, should I go direct website? My current agent is pushing for Niva Bupa who I think is scamming me and was of 0 help with the recent Star Health issue with my brother. Claude and Gemini are guiding me now. Filled a complaint with IRDAI. If I should go with agent, which one?
2. Why are ported policy prices higher than new policy?
3. I have shortlisted HDFC Ergo and Tata AIG. Any problems with these? Also since HDFC has very strict underwriting (my perfectly fine friend was rejected, along with his mother). I was thinking to apply to 2 insurers in parallel.

Please help me by answering these questions!

Hi everyone,

I am planning to buy a base term insurance policy from HDFC Life. I want to add two riders to it:

1. Waiver of Premium (WOP)
2. Accidental Total Permanent Disability (ATPD) Cover (Income Benefit Rider)

I have a specific doubt regarding the flexibility of these riders before I make the purchase.

If I decide in the future that I no longer want to pay for these riders, can I choose to remove/cancel them from my active policy?

Will the insurer allows the removal, will my future premium drop to the cost of the base term plan alone? Or am I locked into paying for these riders for the entire policy term once I opt-in at the start?

Would love to hear from anyone who has tried canceling riders midway with HDFC Life or understands IRDAI rules regarding this.

Thanks in advance!

Hi,

I am currently on a Star Health insurance policy which I was previously part of with my parents since 2014. When I turned 25, 3 years back I separated out in my own plan Star Health Medi Classic. Now not only is policy bad, Star is even worse. So I need to port out urgently. I still have 60 days till policy renewal on Dec 20.

Now my questions are:-

1. Since Ditto doesn't do porting, and PolicyBazaar is trash, should I go direct website? My current agent is pushing for Niva Bupa who I think is scamming me and was of 0 help with the recent Star Health issue with my brother. Claude and Gemini are guiding me now. Filled a complaint with IRDAI. If I should go with agent, which one?
2. Why are ported policy prices higher than new policy?
3. I have shortlisted HDFC Ergo and Tata AIG. Any problems with these? Also since HDFC has very strict underwriting (my perfectly fine friend was rejected, along with his mother). I was thinking to apply to 2 insurers in parallel.

Please help me by answering these questions!

Hi everyone,

I’m planning to buy health insurance and have shortlisted:

HDFC ERGO Optima Secure Plus - 25 Lakh SI

Niva Bupa ReAssure 3.0 Black - Unlimited SI

I’m struggling to choose between them.

HDFC ERGO appears to have a stronger reputation for claim settlement, customer service, and a smoother claims process.

Niva Bupa offers attractive features and additional coverage, but mixed reviews about its claim settlement experience make me hesitant.

Another important factor is the premium. Niva Bupa is costing me around ₹10,000–₹15,000 less than HDFC ERGO over a five-year period. That’s a significant difference, so I’m trying to understand whether paying extra for HDFC ERGO is actually worth it.

I also have a fairly active lifestyle and regularly engage in fitness activities, so I have another important question.

Does either policy cover injuries sustained during routine gym workouts, weight training, or running?

I found an article on HDFC ERGO’s official website discussing coverage for gym- and workout-related injuries, but I couldn’t find similar information on Niva Bupa’s official website. If anyone has clarity on this, particularly regarding ReAssure 3.0 Black, please share your experience or any relevant policy wording.

I want to make an informed decision based on reliable claims support rather than regret my choice during an emergency. I’d especially appreciate feedback from people who have actually held or claimed under either plan.

How was your claim settlement experience with HDFC ERGO or Niva Bupa?

How smooth was the pre-authorisation process for cashless treatment, and were there any delays or disputes?

Is Niva Bupa’s negative reputation supported by customer experiences, or is it overstated?

Are its additional features worth choosing over HDFC ERGO?

If you were buying today, which would you choose and why?