- Tax benefits under section 80D, with instant issuance of tax certificate
- No health check-up required upto the age of 55 years for purchase of a policy
- Multiple electronic forms of payment available including internet banking, credit card, debit card and cash card
ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company Ltd., offers a convenient online facility to buy health insurance instantly, for the benefit of those looking to avail of Tax benefit under section 80D before March 31, 2010. On successful completion of the online purchase or renewal, the 80D tax certificate is instantly mailed to the customer. Policy holders no longer need to wait for policy certificate delivery or locating a nearby branch or agent; all they need to do is log on to www.icicilombard.com and click on buy or renew instantly link, search for their policy and buy and renew it immediately through an online payment.
An added advantage is that for instant purchase of the policy, no health check up required upto the age of 55 years. To ensure instant premium payment within the financial year ending March 31st, multiple electronic forms of payment are available including internet banking, credit card, debit card and cash card
According to Mr. Kartik Jain, Head Marketing & E-Channel, ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company Ltd., “Our research into customer needs suggests that a number of people avail of the tax benefit under section 80D towards the last few days of the financial year. Our website www.icicilombard.com with its 24 x7 accessibility, paperless transactions and online management of service requests, is a quick and convenient solution for people who are hard pressed for time and want to instantly buy a health insurance policy with tax benefit under section 80D. This is just one of the many initiatives in the pipeline to offer ICICI Lombard GIC Ltd. customers greater convenience and superior service through the internet.”
About Section 80D:
Investments made towards medical insurance premium paid qualifies for deduction under section 80D from your income up to a defined limit.
How much do you save?
As per Section 80D, the premium paid for medical insurance is deductible from your income up to Rs. 15,000 per year. However, if you are a Senior Citizen (56 years and above) the limit increases up to Rs. 20,000 per year.
If you are paying the medical insurance premium for your parents, an additional deduction of Rs. 15,000 per year can be claimed under section 80D. Again, if your parents are Senior Citizens, you can claim an additional amount of Rs. 20,000
Thus, you can deduct up to Rs. 35,000 from your taxable income for medical insurance premiums paid.
The premiums paid for self, spouse (dependent or not dependent), parents (dependent or not dependent) and children are considered for deduction under section 80D.
(Note: You can not claim premiums paid for your in-laws).
Sec 80D and Hindu Undivided Family (HUF)
Even when you file the Income Tax return as an HUF, the medical premiums paid for any member of the HUF can be claimed for deduction under section 80D as per the above limit. In this case, the deduction can be claimed only if the premium is paid by the HUF
Section 80D and Private Insurers
There is no restriction on who you can buy the medical insurance from. Irrespective of whether you buy medical insurance from a Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) insurer or from a Private Insurer, you can claim deduction under section 80D
About ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company Ltd.
ICICI Lombard GIC Ltd. is a 74:26 joint venture between ICICI Bank Limited, India’s second largest bank with USD 75 billion in assets and Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited, a Canada based USD 27 billion diversified financial services company engaged in general insurance, reinsurance, insurance claims management and investment management.
ICICI Lombard GIC Ltd. is the largest private sector general insurance company in India with a Gross Written Premium (GWP) of Rs. 37,492 million for the year ended March 31, 2009. As on February 28, 2009, the company has 4,640 employees and 359 branches In the financial year ended March 31, 2009, the company issued over 4 million policies and serviced over 33 lakh claims. The company has a claim disposal ratio of 97% (percentage of claims) settled against claims reported) as on March 31, 2009
The company has been assigned a domestic rating of ‘iAAA’ by ICRA (an associate of Moody’s Investors Service) for highest claim paying ability and a fundamentally strong position, for the fourth consecutive year. ICICI Lombard Auto Insurance has been rated highest in customer satisfaction by J.D. Power Asia Pacific in India among 11 auto insurance providers. The company has been conferred the Golden Peacock- Eco Innovation Award of 2009 for weather insurance and the Customer and Brand Loyalty award in the “Insurance Sector - Non-Life” at the 3rd Loyalty awards, 2010. It was awarded the ‘General Insurance Company of the Year’ at the 11th Asia Insurance Industry Awards. The company also won the NDTV Profit Business Leadership Award 2007 and was adjudged as the most Customer Responsive Company in the Insurance category at the Economic Times Avaya GlobalConnect Customer Responsiveness Award 2006. It has the Gold Shield for “Excellence in Financial Reporting” by the ICAI (Institute of Chartered Accountants of India) for the year ended March 31, 2006.
ICICI Lombard allows instant policy issuance and renewal through its website www.icicilombard.com for all retail insurance products including Car Insurance, Health Insurance, Travel Insurance, Two Wheeler Insurance and Home Insurance. There are multiple payment options available including internet banking, credit card, debit card and cash card.
For more details about the company, log on to the website www.icicilombard.com
