How to Check Vehicle Insurance Status Online?

Vehicle insurance which is also known as motor insurance is insurance for two-wheelers, cars and commercial vehicle. The main objective of these insurance plans is to provide protection against bodily injury and physical damage caused by the vehicle due to accidents and traffic collisions. Liabilities arising from bodily injury and damage caused to the third party is a compulsory coverage needed for every vehicle plying on Indian road as per the Motor Vehicle Act. Motor insurance plans come in comprehensive packages also which gives protection to the owner-driver and to the vehicle against man-made and natural calamities risk. Vehicle insurance status can be checked online in many ways.

The motor insurance industry in India

Currently, the Indian general insurance industry is growing rapidly. There are 33 general insurance companies operating in India. Motor insurance business contributes to a major percentage of over 50% to the growth of the general insurance industry. As insurance providers are coming up with customisable and personalised motor insurance plans, the industry is growing rapidly. As per the recent findings, the total gross premium of the motor insurance industry is expected to cross 17 billion $ mark by the end of 2025. 

The motor insurance industry in India has evolved over the years. There were times when people had to wait for a few days to get the motor insurance policy to get the existing policy renewed. Now, with the digitalisation, a new motor insurance policy can be availed online within few clicks. Renewing, filing the claims and placing the enquiry and every process related to motor insurance has become effortlessly easy. Hassle-free claim processes and efficient ways of handling claims are making it all the more simple for customers. Popular insurance companies and insurance technology firms have started mobile self-inspection service which is resulting in smooth business. Moreover, the insurance regulatory body, IRDAI (Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India) has come up with various regulatory changes that help in boosting the growth of motor insurance industry. IRDAI takes the data from the Insurance Information Bureau of India to determine third party motor insurance premiums. 

Motor insurance is mandatory in India for every vehicle. To track the motor insurance policies, government’s Insurance Information Bureau of India (IIB) has taken various initiatives. Let’s take a look at the details of these initiatives by the government. 

Government initiatives to track motor insurance policies

Government has taken following initiative to track and check vehicle insurance policies

• Automated daily data exchange with NIC (National Informatics India) for identification of uninsured vehicles
• Automated daily data sharing with various state enforcement agencies
• V seva services are available on website and mobile application for enforcement agencies, insurance companies and general public
• Automated daily motor insurance policy
• Stolen but subsequently insured vehicles reports for FY 2014-15, 015-16 and 2016-17
• Canned reports for insurance companies on various dimensions

What is the Insurance Information Bureau of India (IIB)?

Insurance Information Bureau of India (IIB) was promoted by IRDAI (Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India) in the year 2009. Insurance Information Bureau is a data repository and analytics bureau that collects reliable, accurate and timely data for the Indian insurance sector. The main objective of setting up of Insurance Information Bureau was for data collection that can help the insurance industry to function effectively and efficiently. This was the step taken by the IRDAI, insurance regulator to protect the interest of policyholders. IIB offers its service package called V Seva that includes various services such as SMS, website and call-centre based which provides information such as accident records and how to check vehicle insurance status etc. 

Check vehicle insurance status online

If you are a victim of unfortunate road accidents and you are having no details of vehicle insurance of the vehicle responsible for the accident, you can avail the details from Insurance Information Bureau. Insurance Information Bureau (IIB) will have the vehicle insurance details for all the insured vehicles online since April 01, 2010. However, you need to provide certain basic details. Following are the details that you need to keep ready to check vehicle insurance status online.

• Name of the vehicle owner
• Address of the vehicle owner
• Email ID and mobile number
• Vehicle registration number
• Date of accident
• Place of accident

Steps to be undertaken for checking the status of the vehicle insurance

It’s quite simple to check vehicle insurance status online. Following is the process to follow.

1. Long on to the website of Insurance Information Bureau
2. Click on V-Seva tab, you will be taken to a new page – Accident Vehicle Information Retrieval System
3. Fill in all the relevant details of the vehicle responsible for the accident – name, email id, mobile number, address, registration number, and accident date and accident place. 
4. Submit the information
5. If the vehicle details are available on IIB’s database, you will get the information on vehicle insurance status. 

If you are unsuccessful in retrieving the vehicle insurance information, you can approach the concerned RTA (Regional Transport Authority) with the details of vehicle owner and address. Before you check vehicle insurance status online on the Insurance Information Bureau, it’s important to pay attention to following guidelines mentioned in the website of IIB.

• Remember you will be allowed to search for vehicle insurance information up to a maximum of three times with a particular email Id and mobile number
• Vehicle registration number has to be entered without any special character
• It’s important to note that there is two months’ time lag in receiving the vehicle insurance data from the insurance companies to IIB. Hence, newer policy details may not reflect in the database
• For new vehicles, insurance companies submit only Chassis and Engine Numbers at the time of issuing the policy
• Information on vehicle insurance policies are available starting from period April 1, 2010

To sum up, retrieving vehicle insurance details online is no longer a complicated task. In case of an unfortunate accident and you have no details regarding the insurance of the concerned vehicle involved in an accident, IIB portal helps you retrieve information instantly with few basic details. Having the insurance details of the vehicle helps you place the claim with the insurance company at the earliest and receive your compensation.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. What is the vehicle registration number?

The registration number is a legal and unique identification number of any authorised vehicle plying on road. The registration number is issued to every new vehicle by district-level Regional Transport Authority (RTA).

2. What does third party liability vehicle insurance cover?

Third-party vehicle insurance provides coverage against the liabilities that may arise in an accident due to:

• • Death or bodily injury caused to third-party
  • Property damage caused to third-party
  • Accidental death caused to third-party

3. What is the period of third-party vehicle insurance policy?

Third-party vehicle insurance was earlier issued for one year tenure. However, post enforcements from the honourable Supreme Court, all the new vehicles now (from September 2018) are required to avail long-term third-party vehicle insurance coverage. For new cars, the coverage needs to be availed for three years and for two-wheelers the coverage has to be for five years.

4. What is the Certificate of Insurance in vehicle insurance?

As per Rule 141 of the Central Motor Vehicle Rules 1989, every insurance company is compulsorily required to issue a certificate of insurance in addition to your policy document at the time of purchasing and renewing the vehicle insurance policy. The certificate of insurance carrying the details of insurance policy is issued in the format laid down in Form 51 prescribed under the Central Motor Vehicle Rules, 1989.

5. What is the process of a claim under third-party vehicle insurance?

If you are the unfortunate victim of a road accident, you can check the vehicle insurance status of the vehicle responsible for the accident and retrieve the data from the Insurance Information Bureau website. Following is the process of claim to follow after receiving the data:

• • File a complaint with the nearest police station (this can be done before retrieving the insurance details)
  • Approach motor claims lawyer for filing the claim in a special court, the Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal. The claim can be placed in the tribunal nearest to the place of accident or nearest to the place where the victim lives
  • The court will hear both the parties involved in the accident
  • The court will examine the evidence and then decides the liability. Based on this you will receive your compensation for the loss.