You use your credit or debit cards to buy things.Did you know that they also provide insurance if you meet with an accident or that there is a life cover if you use them?
Did you know that the cheapest insurance costs you only one rupee a month?
Whenever we think of insurance we think of life insurance, vehicle insurance or property insurance. Now thanks to Covid-19, health insurance is also in focus.
We’ll start with the cheapest insurance. The
Pradhan Mandri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY) was introduced in 2016 for people 18 to 70 years of age with an account in a bank or post office. For just 12 rupees a year, you get a Rs 2-lakh cover for accidental death or permanent disability or loss of limbs and/or eyes.
Once you join the scheme, the premium is automatically taken out of your account on May 31 every year. You don’t have to fill out any form every year for this.
A cheap and good life insurance is the
Pradhan Mandri Jevan Jhothi Bima Yojana (PMJJBY). You have to be 18 to 50 years old (renewal is done up to 55 years). The premium is Rs 330 a year and the coverage is for Rs. 2 lakhs.
Likewise, the debit cards and the credit cards issued by banks are also offer insurance cover depending upon the type of card.
RUPAY CARDS
Rupay non-premium cards carry personal accident insurance cover of Rs 2 lakhs. The minimum age is 18 years. Premium RuPay cards offer personal accident cover up to Rs 10 lakhs.
VISA CARDS
State Bank of India offers Insurance cover ranging from Rs 2 lakhs to Rs10 lakhs for debit cards (Non-Air accident) and Rs 4 lakhs to Rs 20 lakhs for debit cards (Air- accident ). Likewise credit cards also offer insurance cover based on the type of credit card. For instance, HDFC Bank Freedom Credit Card offers
free accidental death insurance up to 50 lakhs on completing a minimum of 4 transactions every month.
MASTERCARD
Master card offers personal accident insurance if you use it. For example, if you use the card to buy an air ticket, you get personal accident coverage for the flight.
In PMJJBY AND PMSBY, the benefit is the same for all account holders. In case of RuPay, VISA and Master cards, the issuing banks offer cards of different types with various facilities. For example, SBI offers the following personal insurance cover (death only) for its debit card holders.
SBI Gold (MasterCard/VISA) Personal Accident Rs 2,00,000/-
SBI Platinum (MasterCard/VISA) Rs 5,00,000/-
SBI VISA Signature Debit Card : Rs 10,00,000/-
You must read the terms and conditions of the cards before buying and note the facilities and the complying terms.