Accidents happen every day – to people you know or to people afar off – and it might happen to you one day. Personal accidents happen at home, on the road to work, and at workplaces – and while many accidents may leave you injured and hospitalized, others may cause death. With a personal accident insurance policy, the financial consequence of any potential accident becomes reduced and almost non-existent.
Accidents at home, at workplaces, or along the roads can cause personal injuries such as loss of limbs, organ damage, dismemberment, burns, lacerations, paralysis, and death. Depending on the type of accident insurance policy, a policyholder can enjoy an emergency medical treatment, extended hospitalization, medical tests and exams, lodging needs, income loss replacement, and death benefits. These among others are why you need personal accident insurance coverage.
Types of personal accident insurance
Individual accident insurance
This policy offers financial protection when you get involved in an accident that leaves you physically disabled, hospitalized, or even dead. It may also cover loss of income during your hospitalization, and may include temporary lodging if you lost your home.
Group accident insurance
This is usually purchased by employers to protect employees working in a factory or on road trips. Companies usually enjoy discounted rates on their premiums since the policy covers several employees at the same time. The policy offers protection against injuries sustained in the workplace and during the course of one’s job.
Personal accident and health insurance compared
There is a slight difference between personal accident insurance and health or medical insurance. With accident insurance, your insurance company pays you directly when you suffer any accidental event at home, on the road, or at your workplace. With health or medical policy, your insurer does not pay you directly but makes the payment to the hospital treating you.
You get paid directly when you take out personal accident insurance, but your medical center gets paid directly to treat you with a health policy. With accident insurance, the policy may cover your loss of income, mortgage or rent, utility bills, and other non-medical expenses; but a medical or health policy covers only your hospital treatment and nothing else – except in the event of death.
Experts advise that a personal accident insurance policy must be contracted in addition to a normal health policy – meaning that accident insurance should be supplemental to health insurance in the best scenario. Health insurance will cover critical illnesses such as stroke, heart attack, or cancer diagnosis; but an accident policy will only protect against disabilities resulting from personal mishaps.
Benefits of accident insurance policy
Some of the benefits of personal accident insurance coverage include –
- Financial protection for you and your loved ones
- Extensive health and wellness coverage at cheap rates
- Customizable policy to suit your personal needs
- Protection in your workplace
- The policy can be taken out online and operated online
- Covers income loss, hospital stays, medical tests, temporary accommodation, etc.
If you travel constantly for work or work in a high-risk environment such as a factory, in the mines, or in the ship – you need quality accident insurance to protect you against work-related mishaps. There are licensed brokers out there that will be happy to visit your home or office to explain how the plans work and how you can cash out on them when accidents happen to you.
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