People boarding an Uber vehicle in India will automatically be entitled to an insurance coverage of up to Rs 5 lakh, the ride-hailing giant shared this announcement on Wednesday.
This means, in case of an accidental death or disability, Uber riders will be able to claim a maximum of Rs 5,00,000. That’s not all, rider will be able to claim up to Rs 2,00,000 for accidental hospitalisation, which includes maximum OPD benefit up to Rs 50,000 for per passenger free of charge.
To provide these benefits, Uber has partnered with Bharti AXA and Tata AIG for the insurance scheme which will cover all riders in cars, autos and two-wheelers.
This free of cost initiative does sound attractive, and keeps people safer while they’re on the move in either of these Uber services, but it does raise the question of legitimacy. In order to keep the process transparent, Uber has devised a step-to-step measure to ensure the rightful victims are applying for the damages.
To report an accident to Uber, riders can go to the "Past Trips" section of the app and provide feedback on the ride. From there, scroll down to the Help section, and click on "I was involved in an accident".
The insurance eligibility is available from the moment a person boards with Uber, to the point where their ride finishes.
Uber says its 24x7 support team will then reach out to the rider and coordinate with the insurance partner to take them through the claim process which has been made cashless. The rider has to fill a form on the app, after which Uber’s team will get in touch with them for follow ups.
Getting through insurance claims in India can be a tedious process, and history of such practices are a clear indicator of that. It remains to be seen what kind of incidents are deemed serious by Uber, and how it plans on providing the claim amount to such riders.
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