Motor Insurance Claims in Practice
Own damage claims go through a surveyor and a garage. Third-party claims go to the Claims Tribunal.
A motor policy produces two very different claims. An own damage claim is the insured's claim for repairs to their own vehicle, settled with a surveyor and a garage. A third-party claim is a victim's claim against the insured, settled by the insurer before a Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal. The steps, the documents and the timelines differ.
IRDAI's 2024 master circulars set the rules for retail motor claims: when a surveyor is needed, how fast each step must happen, and what an insurer may not do.
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An Own Damage Claim, Step by Step
A hatchback is damaged in a collision in Pune.
- 1
Intimate the insurer
By app, call centre, website or the agent. IRDAI's rule is that no claim may be rejected or closed only for delayed intimation or missing documents.
- 2
Take the vehicle to a garage
At a network garage the claim is usually cashless: the insurer pays the garage directly and the insured pays only the deductible, depreciation and anything not covered. At any other garage the insured pays and claims reimbursement.
- 3
Survey
A loss of ₹50,000 or more must be surveyed by a registered surveyor and loss assessor, allotted within 24 hours of the claim. Below that, the insurer may assess the loss itself.
- 4
Survey report
The surveyor must report within 15 days of allotment. If the surveyor is late, ₹500 a day is payable to the claimant.
- 5
Decision and payment
The insurer must decide within 7 days of the survey report. A delay beyond the set timelines earns the claimant interest at bank rate plus 2%, paid without being asked.
What Gets Deducted From a Repair Bill
| Deduction | How it works |
|---|---|
| Compulsory deductible (excess) | A fixed first amount of each own damage claim borne by the insured, set in the policy schedule |
| Voluntary deductible | An extra amount the insured chose to bear for a premium discount |
| Depreciation on parts | On replaced parts. The tariff-era schedule (which the courseware teaches) charged 50% on rubber, nylon and plastic parts and batteries, 30% on fibreglass, nil on glass, and an age-based rate on metal parts. Today the insurer's filed product sets the schedule |
| Non-OEM parts | IRDAI bars depreciation on non-OEM and non-OES parts used in a repair |
| Zero depreciation add-on | Removes parts depreciation; IRDAI asks insurers to offer a comprehensive cover that includes depreciation |
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Theft, Total Loss and Third-Party Claims
- Theft
- Needs an FIR at once and, after police investigation, the untraced report. The claim is then a total loss on the IDV, and the keys and registration papers go to the insurer.
- Total loss of a wreck
- Settled on the IDV. The insured may keep the wreck and take the IDV less assessed salvage (a cash-loss settlement).
- Salvage in a partial loss
- A retail customer is not burdened with disposing of damaged parts; the insurer collects the salvage itself.
- Third-party claims
- The victim files before the Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal (s.165, s.166), within six months of the accident under the amended Act. The insurer's designated officer may offer a settlement within 30 days (s.149). The insured's job is to inform the insurer and pass on every notice, never to settle privately.
How IC-11 Tests This
Expect the documents for an own damage vs a theft claim, the survey threshold, who decides the TP award (the Tribunal), and a settlement calculation with depreciation and the excess. Courseware written before 2024 may give older survey thresholds and timelines; the current rule is ₹50,000 for motor, a 15-day report and a 7-day decision. The trap is deducting depreciation from a total loss (it is already in the IDV) or from non-OEM parts.
FAQs
What is the claim process for car insurance?expand_more
Intimate the insurer, take the car to a garage (cashless at a network garage), let the surveyor inspect it if the loss is ₹50,000 or more, then the insurer decides within 7 days of the survey report and pays the garage or reimburses you.
What documents are needed for a motor insurance claim?expand_more
The claim form, driving licence, registration certificate and policy; for commercial vehicles, permit and fitness; an FIR where there is theft or third-party injury; and repair bills only if the repair was not cashless.
Is depreciation deducted in a motor claim?expand_more
On replaced parts, yes, under a standard policy, unless a zero depreciation add-on was bought. IRDAI bars depreciation on non-OEM parts, and a total loss is paid on the IDV without further deduction for depreciation.
Where are third-party motor claims decided?expand_more
Before the Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal constituted by the State Government under section 165 of the Motor Vehicles Act. The insurer defends and pays on the insured's behalf.
Next steps
- IDVarrow_forward
- Motor Third Partyarrow_forward
- The insurance claims process (IC-01)arrow_forward
- Surveyors and loss assessors (IC-01)arrow_forward
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