A car insurance policy is mandatory under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. That is why if you are buying a car or have one, you are required to have a valid car insurance policy on the same. There are two types of car insurance policies generally offered by the insurance companies – third-party liability, which is mandatory under law, and comprehensive car insurance policy which covers third party liability and own damages.
The car insurance policy number is a unique number that is printed on the policy document. It is allotted by the insurance company to every policyholder. It helps the company identify the policy account. The policy number is a numerical digit that you get after the policy is issued.
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If you buy your car insurance policy online, the number can be found on the soft copy of the policy document sent to your email ID. For offline policies, however, you would find the number printed on the policy document when you get the hard copy of the same.
What is a car registration number?
Vehicle number means the registration number of your car. Your car registration number is a unique number allotted to the vehicle by the Regional Transport Office of your district. When you buy a car, you will have to register it with your local RTO within a period of 30 days of buying it. The respective RTO will give you a unique registration number which serves as an identification of your car and its owner, i.e. you.
The vehicle number, or the registration number of the car, consists of 10 digits in which the first two digits signify the state in which your car is registered, the next two digits are the district code and the last four digits are your car’s unique identification number. For example, if your car registration number is WB 28 ST 4509, WB stands for West Bengal, 28 refers to the district of the state in which the car has been registered and 4509 is the unique identification number of your car.
When do you need your car insurance policy number?
Your car insurance policy number is required in several instances. Therefore, you should keep the physical copy of your car insurance policy handy while driving a vehicle. Some of the instances when you need your car insurance policy number are as follows:
1. In case of making a claim
The insurance company asks for your car insurance’s policy number when you are registering your claim. Additionally, when filing a police FIR in the case of a third party or theft claims, the police might also require your car insurance policy number to be mentioned on the FIR. Thus, when making claims, the policy number is needed.
2. Renewing the insurance policy
The car insurance policy number is essential at the time of renewing the policy. If you renew your existing policy, you would have to provide the car insurance policy number to retrieve your details.
You can also buy a new insurance policy on renewal and transfer the existing no claim bonus to the new policy. In such cases too, the policy number would be needed when filling up the form for the new plan.
3. For checking car insurance details
If you don’t have your car registration number handy and you need to check the details of your insurance policy, you can use your car insurance policy number to do the same. Similarly, you can also use your car registration number to check the policy details if you do not have a car insurance policy number handy.
4. For the purpose of verification
The car insurance policy number is required when the traffic police stop your vehicle to check the validity of your insurance policy. In such a case, even if you do not have a physical copy of your policy document, you can provide your car insurance policy number which would allow the law authorities to check the validity of your insurance online.
5. To apply for duplicate documents
Though it is much easier to check or retrieve your car insurance policy online, you may require physical copies of the document for various purposes. Hence, if you have lost your car insurance policy document, you can apply for a duplicate one. You would require the policy number in order to apply for a duplicate car insurance policy.
Your car insurance policy number is, therefore, important and should be kept handy at all times.
Different ways to find your car insurance policy number using car number
If you have lost your policy document or have forgotten your car insurance policy number and need to access it, your vehicle number would come in handy. You can find your car insurance policy number through your vehicle or registration number.
When you buy your car insurance policy, it gets linked with your car registration number making it easier to check the details of the policy with the help of the registration number. Below are some of the ways how to find insurance policy number by vehicle number:
Online
There are different ways to check your car insurance policy number online. If you want to know how to find car insurance policy number online, here are your options:
- You can visit the official website of the Regional Transport Office in which your car is registered and fill in your registration number to check your car insurance policy number
- The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India has developed a website known as the Insurance Information Bureau (https://iib.gov.in/). You can access the website for checking car insurance policy number online using your registration number
- You can visit the State Transport Department website and find the details of your car insurance policy using your registration number
- The website of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (https://parivahan.gov.in/parivahan/) also contains the details of the car insurance policy issued on your registration number. You can, thus, access the details of the insurance policy on the website by entering your registration number.
- You can also visit the official website of the car insurance company and use your registration number to log into your account to check your car insurance policy number. By logging into your account, you can also check various other details of your car insurance policy.
Alternatively, if you do not remember your car registration number, some insurance companies provide a mobile application facility in which you can log in to your account through a mobile number. After you log in on the mobile app, all the details of your car insurance policy will be reflected including the policy number. You can, thus, access your car insurance policy number through the mobile application anytime anywhere.
Offline
You can take the help of the insurance aggregator or the broker from whom you brought the insurance policy. Alternatively, you can also call the insurance company or visit the nearest branch of the insurance company and provide your car registration number along with certain personal details as may be required. The insurance aggregator or the executive of the branch will help you find your car insurance policy number.
A car insurance policy number is the identification number of your car insurance. It should, therefore, be stored carefully. If you forget or misplace your car insurance policy number, you don’t have to worry. If you are looking for an answer to how to find my car insurance policy number online, the answer is your car registration number. Use the number and opt for any of the methods stated above to find your car insurance policy number.
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Frequently Asked Questions
- Does my car insurance policy number stay the same on renewal?
- If you renew the policy with the same insurance company, your car insurance policy number would stay the same. However, if you switch insurers, the policy number would change. You should, thus, keep the latest policy number handy at all times.
- Is the proposal number similar to the policy number?
- No, the proposal number is different from the policy number. The proposal number is the number that is applicable when you apply for a car insurance policy. Once the policy is issued, another formal number is issued which is called the policy number.
- Would I have to pay a fee for requesting a duplicate copy of the insurance policy?
- The requirement of the fee depends on your insurance company. Many companies charge an administrative fee for issuing a duplicate policy copy. Others don’t. So, check with your insurer if you need to pay a fee for a duplicate copy and pay the fee, if applicable, to get the copy at the earliest.
- What is an Insurance Certificate?
- The Insurance Certificate is a one-page document that contains the details of your car insurance policy, including the policy number. It is recommended to carry the certificate in the car so that you can produce it when required.
- Does my RC book contain the car insurance policy number?
- No, the RC book does not contain the details of your insurance policy. As such, the car insurance policy number is not recorded in the RC Book.
