All you need to know about Portability in Health Insurance

According to the guidelines of the Insurance Regulatory Development Authority of India (IRDAI), portability is the right of every individual. The insured person can port their policy from one insurer to another in case of dissatisfaction. Moreover, Health Insurance companies always come up with innovative plans which offer comprehensive coverage. If any other policy benefits and coverage from other insurers grab your attention or deliver better benefits than yours, you can switch your policy at the time of renewal.

Most people are familiar with the word portability which explains switching from one service provider to another. In this regard, the insured can port their policy from one insurer to another in case of dissatisfaction with the insurer or with the coverage of the opted Health Insurance policy.

The significant feature of portability in Health Insurance policy is that all your accumulated benefits like cumulative bonuses and waiting periods for pre-existing or specific diseases, will remain intact. The insured does not have to endure the waiting period again with the new insurer. The portability becomes applicable for all indemnity-based Health Insurance policies such as Individual Health Insurance policies, Family Health Insurance policies and Health Insurance policies for parents.

Porting your Health Insurance policy is possible only at the time of renewal. Also, be mindful that the insurer does not charge any additional fee for portability. A few common reasons that result in portability are poor service, low claim settlement ratio, high premiums, inadequate coverage, etc. Rather than tolerating the dissatisfaction, consider porting your policy to better and trustworthy insurance service providers for better benefits.

How to port your Health Insurance policy? The first step is to inform your current insurer 45 days before the policy's renewal date. The IRDAI portability form should be filled out, to initiate the portability procedure. Approach the new insurer you want to port to and fill out their proposal form. If you need to submit any necessary documents, such as claims history, medical records or other related documents confirm with the new insurer. The new insurer will determine whether to accept the proposal form or not after analyzing all the reports and documents. The reasons like missing the required documents, misleading or irrelevant information, etc., might lead to the rejection of the portability form. It could take around 15 days to complete the procedure.

Porting your Health Insurance policy ensures that your continuity benefits remain intact. By porting the Health Insurance policy the insured is entitled to upgrade the policy for better benefits and quality service. You can customize your policy to make sure it suits your healthcare needs. Remember to check the sub-limits, co-pay and deductibles of the new Health Insurance policy. While porting, the accumulated bonus will be added to the new Sum Insured which makes sure you never have to miss out on your cumulative bonus.

Comparing the Health Insurance policy before or after the purchase will bring a fortune. If you have any dissatisfaction with the insurer or the opted Health Insurance policy, then it is high time for you to port your policy. Portability is one of the significant features that entitles the insured to switch their policy to another insurer to avail themselves of better benefits.