What is Deductibles in Insurance, It's Meaning, Types & Working Explained

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What is an Insurance Deductible?
How Does Insurance Deductible Work?
Purpose of Deductible in Insurance
Types of Deductibles in Insurance
What Happens When the Claim Amount is Less than the Deductible?
Deductibles in Health Insurance
Deductibles in Car Insurance
Deductibles in Property Insurance
Difference Between Compulsory Deductibles and Voluntary Deductibles
Frequently Asked Questions

What is an Insurance Deductible?

An insurance deductible is an amount the policyholder will have to shell out from his pocket for repairs in the event of loss or damage. Only after this will the insurance policy come into play. The insurer will pay for the losses per the policy's pre-defined limits.

Deductible, in other words, is the policyholder's share in the claim amount. It is amongst one of the conditions of acceptance of the insurance contract.

Say you get your office building, equipment, and other fixtures covered. The insurer clarifies that a claim up to Rs.1 lac will have 1% of the claim amount or Rs.10,000 (whichever is higher) applied as a deductible. A fire occurred, and a loss of Rs.750

How does Insurance Deductible Work?

An insurance deductible is to support you when a huge loss occurs that is beyond the capacity of your pocket. There is a limit to expenses that we can bear in our daily lives. The same goes for asset insurance.

You have a car worth Rs.10 lakhs and buy insurance. The insurance premium is Rs.55000/-, and the mentioned deductible is Rs.15,000/-. Now, you agree that you can bear any claim to Rs.15,000. But beyond this, you need the support of an insurer to take care of expenses above this amount.

Here, Rs.15,000 is the deductible that you, as the policyholder, can afford. This also means that up to this amount, you can self-insure the risk.

Presume that your car gets a bang-on in the extremes of the traffic. There is no way you could manage a saviour which rips off the car's bumper and the rear camera. The total loss, including the bumper and the camera, costs Rs.40,000/-. As per the condition of the insurance contract, the first Rs.15,000 will be managed by you. But the remaining Rs.25,000 will be paid by the insurer.

What is the Purpose of Deductible in Insurance?

There are several purposes of a deductible in insurance, and some of them are mentioned in the following section

Types of Deductibles in Insurance

The various types of deductibles in insurance are mentioned in the following section:

Types	Description
Per Admission Deductibles	In this type, the policyholder pays a fixed amount of money every time the person is admitted to the hospital.
Comprehensive Deductibles	These are quite extensive and include all the covers the policyholder mentions in their policy.
Non-comprehensive Deductibles	These only apply to some selective covers mentioned within the policy.
Compulsory Deductibles	These sets of deductibles are mandatory for the policyholder and laid down by the insurance company.
Voluntary Deductibles	As the name suggests, voluntary deductibles depend on the policyholder's will, consequently lowering insurance premiums.
Homeowners Insurance Deductibles	This category includes deductibles against natural calamities that can damage a home, such as flood insurance deductibles, hurricane insurance deductibles, earthquake insurance deductibles, etc.
High Deductible Health Plans	High-deductible health insurance plans require the policyholder to pay more upfront for medical services before the insurance company steps in.
Low Deductible Health Plans	In this case, the policyholder is liable to pay less for healthcare services, although they have higher monthly premiums.

What Happens When the Claim Amount is Less than the Deductible?

If the claim amount is less than the deductible mentioned in the policy, then the claim will not be admissible. This implies that the insurer's role will not be involved when the claim amount is less than the deductible.

Another angle to the substance is that you should be aware of your policy and deductible, indicating the money you will have to bear at the time of claim.

It is good to understand factors like age, susceptibility to damage, history, and the present condition of the asset for which you're getting insurance.

Presume your vehicle, which you bought 10 years ago, is no longer in good condition. The car is old and not that fuel efficient now. Despite no fault, you have asked for the claim in recent years. In such a situation, even after 10 years, the possibility of a claim may be high or low. You must think of the deductible when you get the insurance when the vehicle's value reduces.

With time, the insured value of the vehicle also depreciates but the repairs of parts like bumper will attract price as per the latest installations. This will force you to spend the same amount for repair even when the value and premium have reduced over time.

Deductibles in Health Insurance

The health insurance sector has deductibles that depend on the policy’s terms and regulations. They help insurance companies reduce small claims and prevent fraud. However, there are two types of deductibles in health insurance:

Compulsory Deductibles	Voluntary Deductibles
These are mandatory deductibles, fixed by the insurance companies, that must be paid during each hospitalisation. They reduce the incidence of small claims and motivate the policyholders to save for larger medical expenses. Apart from this, they also prevent fraudulent claims.	These are optional deductibles that the policyholder chooses to lower the premium costs. This helps reduce administrative expenses and fraudulent claims. Health conditions and affordability should also be considered when opting for a voluntary deductible.

Deductibles in Car Insurance

Compulsory Deductible

The compulsory deductible in car insurance is mandatory for every customer and must be paid. It is a part of the claim, and IRDAI fixes the value for this. Cars with 1500 cc engines have to pay ₹1,000, and cars with engines that are more than 1500 cc have to pay ₹2,000. This does not alter the premium value, as it depends on the car's model or IDV.

Voluntary Deductible

This category of deductibles is paid according to the policyholder's will. The policyholder decides how much money he wants to pay out-of-pocket to get his car damaged and repaired. This, however, decreases the policy's premium amount.

Deductible in Property Insurance

Deductibles in property insurance are the amount that you, as an owner (whose name is under the policy), pay towards the policy’s claim before the insurance provider pays its part.

Depending on the type of property insurance the policyholder has bought, there are various types of deductibles seen, and they are:
Percentage Deductible: In this case, the deductible is a specific percentage of the total value of the insured property mentioned in the claim.
Flat Deductible: This is a fixed amount that has to be paid no matter how much loss you have suffered. After this value is paid, the insurance company takes over.
Time-Based Deductible: This does not include monetary compensation. The deductible amount is measured in time, which is generally a waiting period before coverage starts.
Split Deductible: The split deductible is a balanced combination of flat and percentage deductible.

Difference Between Compulsory Deductibles and Voluntary Deductibles

Compulsory Deductible	Voluntary Deductible
The excess amount is fixed by the insurer, which the insured will bear in the claim amount.	The excess amount is fixed by the insurer, which the insured will bear in the claim amount.
Compulsory Deductible does not affect the premium.	Voluntary Deductible affects the premium directly. A higher deductible means a lower premium, and vice versa.
Compulsory Deductible is mandatory and fixed by IRDAI.	The policyholder chooses Voluntary Deductible.

Taking a deeper insight into how deductibles play can help manage finances in times of emergencies.

Deductibles in insurance are vital to insurance companies' operations, helping them avoid problems and fraudulent activities. However, customers should be aware of deductibles and their advantages so they have no problem using them when required.

FAQs about Deductibles in Insurance

All

What is the meaning of deductibles in insurance?

Deductibles in insurance refer to the money that the policyholder has to pay before the insurance company covers the rest of the expenses.

What is the deductible in an insurance example?

Suppose you have a health insurance deductible of ₹20,000 and your medical expenses total ₹1 Lakhs. Then you need to pay the ₹20,000 at first.

What does deductible mean in cargo insurance?

Deductibles in cargo insurance policies refer to the sum of money the insured person has to pay from their savings before the insurance company starts covering up for their losses.

What is the difference between deductible and excess in insurance?

People often need clarification on excess and deductibles. Hence, the excess is the sum the insured has to pay once the deductible is maxed out.

How does deductible work for health insurance?

The deductible for health insurance is the amount that the policy owner pays before the insurance company covers the rest of the expenses.

How does deductible work for car insurance?

The deductible in car insurance refers to the out-of-pocket money that the insured pays before the insurance company covers the claim.

How does deductible work for home insurance?

In the case of home insurance, a deductible is the amount of money that the homeowner must pay before the policy kicks in.

What is the difference between deductible and coinsurance?

A deductible is the amount of money that the insured pays for coverage services, while coinsurance is a percentage of the total healthcare expenses after the deductible has been paid off.

What is the difference between deductible and copay?

The deductible is a fixed amount of money that a policyholder needs to pay at the beginning of each year to cover certain services, while the copay is the fixed amount that a policyholder pays for certain covered services whenever they receive them.

What is the difference between deductible and out-of-pocket?

The deductible refers to the sum of money that the policyholder pays before the insurance company steps in, while the out-of-pocket is the maximum amount that a policyholder pays, including coinsurance, copayments, and deductible payments.

What is the difference between premium and deductible?

The difference between a premium and deductible is that the policyholder pays a premium to receive the benefits of a particular insurance. In contrast, the deductible is the amount of money you need to pay before the insurance company covers your expenses.