How to claim vehicle insurance — complete 2026 guide

About 22 crore vehicles are insured in India (IRDAI Annual Report 2023-24). Motor insurance accounts for ~32% of all general-insurance premium — the largest segment. Claims worth roughly ₹85,000 crore are settled annually. Repudiation (denial) rates run 4-7%; partial-settlement disputes are far more common.

A motor insurance policy in India has two parts:

1. Third-Party (TP) liability — mandatory under §146 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. Driving without it is a criminal offence (up to 3 months + ₹2,000 fine first time, escalated thereafter). Covers death / injury / property damage you cause to others.
2. Own Damage (OD) — optional but standard. Covers your vehicle against accident, fire, theft, natural disaster (flood, cyclone, earthquake), riot, terrorism, transit damage. A comprehensive policy = TP + OD bundled.

Key legal anchors:

• Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 — §146 (mandatory TP), §147 (requirements of TP policy), §163-A (no-fault liability for hit-and-run), §164 (compensation in case of death / injury — minimum ₹5 lakh death / ₹2.5 lakh grievous injury since 2019 amendment), §165-176 (Motor Accident Claims Tribunals — MACT).
• Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989 — Rule 95 sets the certificate/cover-note format; Rule 100 the claim procedure for accidents.
• IRDAI (Protection of Policyholders' Interests) Regulations, 2017 — Reg. 9 sets the claim TAT.
• IRDAI Master Circular on Motor Insurance 2024 — consolidated operating norms, prescribes 30-day settlement post-survey.
• IRDAI Master Circular on Health Insurance & Motor Insurance 2024 — standardises grievance redressal.
• Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) 2023 §281 / §125 — rash and negligent driving / endangering life — used in FIRs alongside MV Act.

Call the insurer's 24×7 claim helpline. Most policies have a 24-72 hour intimation window — late intimation is a common rejection ground (insurer cannot assess damage if days have passed).

• Bajaj Allianz — 1800-209-5858
• HDFC ERGO — 022-6234-6234
• ICICI Lombard — 1800-2666
• TATA AIG — 1800-266-7780
• New India Assurance — 1800-209-1415
• Oriental Insurance — 1800-118-485
• Reliance General — 1800-3009

You'll get a claim reference number. Save it.

• At the scene: photos from 4 sides, close-ups of damage, photo of other vehicle's number plate (if any), photo of skid marks / debris, photo of road / signage.
• Theft: FIR within 24 hours is non-negotiable — without an FIR the insurer will reject.
• Major accident with injury / death / third-party damage: FIR mandatory under §134 MV Act.
• Minor scrape, no third party involved: FIR not required for OD claim, but recommended for amounts above ₹50,000.

Open the insurer's app (Bajaj CarePoint, HDFC ERGO, ICICI Insure, TATA AIG, etc.) → “Raise a Claim” → upload:

• Damage photos (4-6).
• Vehicle RC (front + back).
• Driving licence of the person who was driving.
• Insurance policy copy (or policy number + DOB).
• FIR (if applicable).
• Driver's Aadhaar (for KYC).

• Insurer assigns an IRDAI-licensed surveyor within 24-48 hours.
• Surveyor visits the workshop, inspects damage, checks the workshop's repair estimate, photographs every damaged part.
• Surveyor's report is due within 15 days of receipt of last document.
• If you disagree with the surveyor's findings, you can request a second surveyor (rare; insurer may charge if second survey confirms first).

• Cashless (network garage): insurer settles directly with the garage. You pay only (a) the deductible (typically ₹1,000 - ₹5,000), (b) non-payable items (consumables — engine oil, washers, paint depreciation, octroi, RTO tax), © GST on labour (sometimes).
• Reimbursement (any garage): you pay the workshop fully → submit final bill + payment proof → insurer reimburses approved amount within 7 days.

Within 30 days of receiving the survey report, the insurer must:

• Approve in full and pay (cashless = pay garage; reimbursement = pay you), OR
• Approve in part with a written breakdown of deductions, OR
• Repudiate with a written, signed letter citing the specific policy clause being relied on.

A vague “claim closed” is NOT a valid repudiation.

Before signing the satisfaction voucher (the workshop will hand it to you), inspect the vehicle thoroughly. Once you sign, you cannot reopen the claim. If repair is incomplete, refuse to sign and ask insurer for a re-inspection.

You have 3 years from the date of repudiation to file at the Insurance Ombudsman or Consumer Forum (limitation under Limitation Act 1963 + IRDAI Ombudsman Rules 2017).

+-----------------------------------+--------------------------------------+
| Intimation window                 | OD/accident: 24-72 hrs after incident|
|                                   | Theft: within 24 hrs (FIR mandatory) |
+-----------------------------------+--------------------------------------+
| Surveyor assignment               | 24-48 hrs of intimation              |
+-----------------------------------+--------------------------------------+
| Surveyor's report due             | 15 days of receipt of last document  |
+-----------------------------------+--------------------------------------+
| Settlement / repudiation TAT      | 30 days from survey report           |
| (IRDAI Reg. 9, 2017)              |                                      |
+-----------------------------------+--------------------------------------+
| Standard deductible               | ₹1,000 (cars ≤ 1500cc) / ₹2,000      |
| (compulsory excess)               | (cars > 1500cc) / ₹5,000 (some hi-end)|
+-----------------------------------+--------------------------------------+
| Voluntary deductible              | ₹2,500 / ₹5,000 / ₹7,500 / ₹15,000 — |
| (optional — gives premium discount)| reduces premium 15-35%              |
+-----------------------------------+--------------------------------------+
| Depreciation on parts             | Plastic — 50%; Glass — NIL; Rubber/  |
| (under standard policy without    | tyres — 50%; Fibre — 30%; Metal      |
| zero-dep add-on)                  | parts — slabbed 0/5/10/15/25/30/40/50%|
+-----------------------------------+--------------------------------------+
| Non-payable items (always)        | Wash, polish, octroi, paint material |
|                                   | tax, towing if not under add-on,     |
|                                   | engine oil top-up, consumables.      |
+-----------------------------------+--------------------------------------+
| NCB on next renewal               | 0% claim-free after 1 yr → 20%; 2 yr |
| (No Claim Bonus)                  | → 25%; 3 yr → 35%; 4 yr → 45%; 5 yr+ |
|                                   | → 50%. Any claim resets to 0%.       |
+-----------------------------------+--------------------------------------+
| Bima Bharosa SLA (IRDAI portal)   | 15 days for insurer first response   |
+-----------------------------------+--------------------------------------+
| Insurance Ombudsman               | FREE. cioins.co.in. 90-day case.     |
|                                   | Award up to ₹50 lakh (revised 2024). |
+-----------------------------------+--------------------------------------+
| RTI to PIO IRDAI Hyderabad        | ₹10 IPO / DD. BPL = free.            |
+-----------------------------------+--------------------------------------+

• NCB misclaim at renewal. You claimed an NCB you weren't entitled to (forgot you'd made a small claim previously). Insurer cross-checks the IIB (Insurance Information Bureau) database and rejects.
• Vehicle modifications not declared. Alloy wheels, sound system, CNG kit, body wrap, performance upgrade — must be declared and endorsed on the policy. Undeclared mods = OD claim repudiation for that part.
• Driver not licensed (or wrong class of licence). Driving a transport vehicle on a private LMV licence; LL holder driving without instructor; expired DL — all bar the claim.
• Under intoxication. Blood alcohol above the limit (or refusal to test) is a standard exclusion.
• Outside geographic limits. India-only policies; if you took the car to Nepal / Bhutan and it crashed, OD won't pay.
• Policy lapsed / not renewed in time. Even a one-day gap can void the policy. The 60-day “break-in” period is for renewal but the new policy starts only from the date of fresh inspection.
• IDV (Insured Declared Value) too low / too high. If you set IDV too low to save premium, claim payout is capped; total loss settlement is artificially low. If too high, surveyor will argue the over-insurance.
• Pre-existing damage. Surveyor identifies that the dent/scratch was pre-existing (not from the claimed incident). Common reason for partial cuts.
• Late intimation. Reported 7 days after incident — insurer says “could not assess”.
• Hit-and-run with no police complaint. No FIR = no third-party trace = OD claim limited to your own damage; no recourse against the offender.
• “Non-genuine spare parts” at workshop — shift to OEM-authorised garage and ask for re-survey (Rohan's case).

Mandatory under IRDAI (Protection of Policyholders' Interests) Regulations 2017 Reg. 17. Every insurer has a Grievance Redressal Officer at branch / state / national level. Email with claim number, full chronology, and your demand. SLA: 15 days.

The IRDAI's official policyholder grievance portal — replaces the older IGMS. Open https://bimabharosa.irdai.gov.in → register (mobile + email) → file complaint → choose insurer → upload evidence. IRDAI forwards to the insurer; insurer must respond within 15 days. If no response or unsatisfactory, the complaint auto-escalates within IRDAI.

The most powerful free remedy. Constituted under the Insurance Ombudsman Rules 2017.

• Open https://www.cioins.co.in → find your jurisdiction (17 zonal offices).
• Pre-condition: 30 days must have passed since your written complaint to the insurer, OR the insurer must have rejected it.
• File Form P-II with: policy copy, claim correspondence, repudiation letter, your demand.
• Free. Personal hearing typically scheduled within 30-90 days.
• Award limit ₹50 lakh (revised 2024 from earlier ₹30 lakh) — final and binding on the insurer.
• If you accept the award, the insurer must comply within 30 days; non-compliance attracts IRDAI penalty.

• Consumer Forum (Consumer Protection Act 2019): district up to ₹50 lakh, state up to ₹2 crore, national above. For deficiency-of-service claims (delayed / partial / wrongful repudiation).
• Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT) — only for third-party death/injury claims under §165 MV Act. Not for own-damage.

The IRDAI is a public authority under §2(h) RTI Act 2005. Public-sector insurers (New India, Oriental, National, United India) are public authorities. Private insurers (Bajaj Allianz, HDFC ERGO, ICICI Lombard, TATA AIG, etc.) are not public authorities — but the IRDAI's regulatory file on them is RTI-able from IRDAI.

RTI helps here when:

• Insurer has missed the 30-day TAT and Bima Bharosa is silent — RTI to PIO, IRDAI, Hyderabad asking: (a) the insurer's overall claim TAT compliance for FY 2024-25, (b) the number of motor claim complaints against this insurer in the last 12 months, © any IRDAI inspection / penalty / supervisory action on this insurer.
• The Ombudsman has passed an award and the insurer is dragging its feet — RTI to IRDAI for the insurer's award-compliance record.
• A surveyor's licence or competence is in question — RTI to IRDAI Surveyors Department for the licence status, complaints, prior penalties.
• Claim trends / repudiation rates for the insurer — useful as evidence in Ombudsman / Consumer Forum.

RTI does NOT help here when:

• You want the insurer to settle YOUR claim — that's a contractual dispute. RTI to IRDAI does not adjudicate contracts. The right route is Insurance Ombudsman — see How to file insurance complaint.
• You want surveyor's report copy — for your own claim, you are entitled to it under IRDAI Reg. 9 (request the insurer directly; no RTI needed).
• You want the surveyor's report on a different policyholder — third-party personal information bar under §8(1)(j).
• You disagree with the deduction maths — pure contractual dispute; goes to Ombudsman / Consumer Forum.

For the citizen, the order of operations is: insurer's grievance officer → Bima Bharosa → Insurance Ombudsman → Consumer Forum. RTI to IRDAI is the fifth rung — for stubborn deadlocks and for evidence-gathering against repeat-offender insurers.

Q. The other party hit me. Should I claim from my insurer or theirs?
For your own damage, claim from your own insurer (faster). For third-party liability against the other driver (medical, loss of use, total loss above your IDV), claim against the other party's TP policy via MACT — but the proceedings are slower (often 1-3 years).

Q. Will making a small claim hurt my NCB?
Yes. Any OD claim — even ₹3,000 — resets your No Claim Bonus to 0% at next renewal. Rule of thumb: if the repair is less than your NCB savings + deductible for next year, pay out of pocket and keep the NCB.

Q. Cashless or reimbursement — which is better?
Cashless if a network garage is convenient and you want zero hassle. Reimbursement if you have a trusted local mechanic, are far from any network garage, or the network garage's repair quality is poor.

Q. I have a zero-depreciation add-on. Will I get 100% of repair cost?
Mostly. Zero-dep covers the depreciation slabs on plastic / fibre / rubber that would otherwise be deducted. But you still pay the deductible + non-payable items (wash, tax, consumables). Zero-dep typically pays an extra 5-15% of total claim value.

Q. My car is over 5 years old. Can I still get OD?
Yes, but the IDV is set per the IRDAI age-based depreciation schedule (year 1: 5%, year 2: 15%, year 3: 20%, year 4: 30%, year 5: 40%, beyond: as agreed between insurer and insured). Some insurers stop offering OD beyond 10-12 years.

Q. The surveyor's deductions look excessive. Can I challenge?
Yes — write to the insurer's grievance officer with item-wise rebuttal. If unsatisfied, escalate to Bima Bharosa with the surveyor report + your rebuttal. Common over-deductions: paint depreciation > 50%, full-bumper depreciation when only paint is involved, “consumables” claimed for items that aren't actually consumables.

Q. Can I switch insurers mid-policy?
No — but you can choose freely at renewal. The NCB is portable — get the previous insurer to issue an NCB Retention Letter within 90 days and use it on the new policy.

• How to file an insurance complaint — IRDAI + Ombudsman process
• How to file an LIC claim — death + maturity 2026 guide
• RTI in 12 simple steps
• All Indian government helplines — one master directory
• RTI forms + state-wise fee chart

Last reviewed: 26 April 2026 by RTI Wiki editorial team. IRDAI rules and helplines are updated periodically — verify on irdai.gov.in / bimabharosa.irdai.gov.in / cioins.co.in or write to admin@bighelpers.in if you spot a stale figure.