Ch. 7: What Are Child Insurance Riders?

When we plan a meal for ourselves, we prepare or order the food according to our taste buds and preferences. Our preferred cuisine, the ingredients we like, and even the level of spiciness we can tolerate.

We like everything customised - from our meals, clothes, to even phone-covers - because we like our needs and choices to be firmly taken care of.

A child insurance plan, too, is a personal purchase, and you would like it to be tailored to your specific needs. That’s where riders come to your rescue.

They are effective add-ons you can pick alongside your present child insurance policy at reasonable rates, to extend the insurance coverage. Riders make your coverage more stable and wide, covering something beyond the dreams and goals of your children. With riders, you make sure your children are protected in every way possible.

• Convenience - To get a rider you don’t have to go through any extra documentation or medical tests, in addition to the ones you’ve already done for your base insurance policy. So without any additional effort, you’ll be able to pick an extra cover.
• Saves time - Riders save time by not having you manage another insurance policy.

1. Surgical Care Rider:

This rider will offer a lump sum benefit, i.e., a fixed sum of money in case you are hospitalised for a minimum period of 24 hours for a surgery that is medically necessary. The benefit amount that they will get under this rider will depend upon the type of surgery, and will be mentioned clearly in the brochure or policy document.

2. Waiver of Premium Rider:

This rider is of 2 types.

Waiver of Premium due to Disability Rider -
This low-cost add-on provides a feature that in case you suffer injuries due to an accident, leading to disability, sometime during the term. You’ll not need to pay any of the future premiums, but can still avail the insurance cover for the rest of the term. This rider is a no brainer, and you should always pick it.

Waiver of Premium due to Critical Illness Rider -
This rider works exactly like the above rider. The only difference is that the premiums will be waived off if you contract one of the listed critical illnesses. This rider will waive off all the future premiums of the Child Plan, as well as the attached riders for the rest of the policy duration.

3. Accidental Disability Rider:

An accidental disability can cause havoc to your family’s financial status. This rider will provide an additional sum of money in case you meet with an accident that leads to disability.

However, you should keep in mind that this rider might only provide cover in limited cases - like in the cases of permanent and total disabilities only.

4. Critical Illness Benefit Rider:

This rider provides your family with a lump-sum amount of money should you get a serious disease from the list of illnesses mentioned in the policy. This amount can be used by your family for all the additional expenses they’ll have to bear as a result of the disease/condition - as well as support their lifestyle.

5. Accidental Death Benefit Rider:

This rider provides an additional sum of money to your nominee, should your death happen due to an accident, during the term of the policy. Please note that the death should happen within 180 days of the accident.

6. Hospital Care Rider:

If you undergo hospitalisation for treatment of an illness or injury that is medically necessary, the Hospital Care Rider will pay a fixed amount of cash on a daily basis for each day you are hospitalised. To avail the benefit under this rider, you are required to be admitted to the hospital for a minimum period of 48 hours.

For instance, you need a 5-day hospitalisation for the treatment of Bronchiolitis. If you’ve opted for this rider along with your term plan, the insurer will pay a specific amount, say Rs. 5000 for 5 days each, i.e., Rs. 25000 in total.

Having said that - if you are looking to provide a comprehensive cover for your children for every possible circumstance, then riders might be very inadequate for you.

While specialised policies are always an ideal choice, most of us completely miss taking such separate covers completely. So if you are buying a child insurance plan after months or years of delays, and want to be done with the purchase quickly, opt for a rider instead of delaying and not buying a separate comprehensive policy. With Riders attached to the policy, there will be no need of worrying about any unfortunate circumstances.