Family floater vs individual
One shared pot, or one policy each?
A family floater gives one sum insured that the whole family shares. Individual plans give each person their own cover. Neither is right for everyone; it depends mostly on the age gap in your family.
| Point | Family floater | Individual plans |
|---|---|---|
| Cover | One amount, say ₹10 lakh, shared by all | Each person has their own ₹10 lakh |
| Premium | Usually lower for a young couple with kids | Higher in total, as each policy is priced separately |
| Priced on | The oldest member's age | Each person's own age |
| Big claim risk | One large claim can use up cover for everyone that year | One person's claim does not touch the others |
| Works well for | Couple under 45 with children | Parents over 60, or a member with an existing illness |
Our usual advice
Keep your parents out of your floater. Adding a 62-year-old to a floater prices the whole policy at 62. A separate senior plan for them, and a floater for you, your spouse and children, often costs less in total.
Add a super top-up instead of a bigger base. A ₹5 lakh base plus a ₹20 lakh super top-up usually costs far less than a ₹25 lakh base policy, and covers the rare large bill.
Premiums depend on age, health, add-ons and the insurer. We show you real quotes, not averages.
Room rent caps
The clause that quietly cuts your claim
Many policies limit the hospital room you can take, often to 1% of the sum insured per day, or to a "single private room". Take a costlier room and the insurer does not just skip the extra rent. It pays the same reduced share of doctor fees, nursing and tests too, because hospitals charge those by room category.
This is called a proportionate deduction. It is the most common reason families get far less than they expected. Plans with no room rent limit cost a little more and remove the problem.
How it typically works; exact rules differ by policy, so we read your policy wording with you.
A worked example: ₹5 lakh cover, room cap ₹5,000 a day
- Room taken, 4 days at ₹8,000
- ₹32,000
- Doctor, nursing, tests (room-linked)
- ₹1,60,000
- Medicines and implants
- ₹48,000
- Total hospital bill
- ₹2,40,000
- Share allowed (5,000 of 8,000)
- 62.5%
- Insurer pays
- ₹1,68,000
- You pay from savings
- ₹72,000
Illustrative figures. Medicines and implants are usually paid in full; room-linked charges are cut in the same ratio as the room.
Waiting periods
What is covered from when
A new policy does not cover everything from day one. Buying early, while you are healthy, is the simplest way to get past these waits before you need the cover.
- Day 1
Accidents
Hospitalisation after an accident is covered from the start.
- 30 days
Most illnesses
A first wait of about 30 days for illness claims in a fresh policy.
- Up to 2 years
Listed conditions
Named procedures such as cataract, hernia or joint replacement often wait 1 to 2 years.
- Up to 3 years
Existing illnesses
Diabetes, blood pressure or anything you had before buying. Some plans offer a shorter wait for an added premium.
Waiting periods vary by plan; maternity cover, where offered, usually has its own wait. Rules as of 2026, check current rules. Always declare existing illnesses: hiding one is the surest way to get a claim rejected later.
How much cover
A starting point for the sum insured
Medical costs have been rising faster than general prices, so cover that looks enough today will feel thin in ten years. We size it on your family, the hospitals you would actually use, and what your savings can absorb.
Premiums paid can also reduce tax under Section 80D: up to ₹25,000 for self and family, and up to ₹50,000 more for parents who are senior citizens, in the old tax regime. Rules as of 2026, check current rules.
| Who is covered | Base cover we start with | Add on top |
|---|---|---|
| Single, under 35 | ₹5 lakh to ₹10 lakh | Super top-up later |
| Couple with 1 or 2 children | ₹10 lakh to ₹15 lakh floater | ₹20 lakh to ₹50 lakh super top-up |
| Parents over 60 | ₹5 lakh to ₹10 lakh each | Check co-pay and existing-illness wait |
| Already covered at work | ₹5 lakh to ₹10 lakh personal | Work cover ends when the job ends |
Claim tips
What to do on the day you need it
Most claim trouble comes from paperwork, not from the policy. Keep the policy number and the insurer's helpline saved on two phones in the family, and tell us the moment someone is admitted.
Need help with a claim now? WhatsApp usChoose a network hospital
For cashless treatment, the hospital must be on your insurer's network list. Check it before a planned admission, not at the desk.
Inform the insurer on time
Planned admission: usually 48 to 72 hours before. Emergency: usually within 24 hours. The hospital's insurance desk sends the cashless request.
Keep every paper
Discharge summary, final bill, pharmacy bills, test reports, and prescriptions. For reimbursement claims you need originals.
Claim pre and post costs
Tests before admission and follow-up visits after discharge are often covered for 30 to 60 days and 60 to 180 days. People forget to claim them.
What we compare for you
Eight lines we read before premium
The cheapest premium often hides a cap somewhere. We put plans from partner insurers next to each other on these points, then tell you in plain words what you give up with each.
Room rent limit
No cap, single private room, or a fixed rupee limit per day.
Waiting periods
Initial, listed conditions and existing illnesses, side by side.
Co-pay
Whether you pay a fixed share of every claim, common in senior plans.
Disease-wise sub-limits
Caps on cataract, joint replacement or specific treatments.
Restoration and bonus
Cover refilled after a claim, and how much it grows in claim-free years.
Network hospitals
Whether the hospitals you would actually use offer cashless treatment.
Claim settlement record
Published claim and complaint figures, read over several years, not one.
Exclusions in the wording
Consumables, day-care lists, and anything permanently excluded.
Health cover options
Tell us who needs cover. We send options on WhatsApp.
Share a few details and we come back with two or three plans compared on the points above, with the premium for each. No charge for the comparison, and you decide in your own time.
- Floater vs individual worked out for your family
- Room rent, co-pay and waiting periods shown plainly
- Help with porting an existing policy, if that suits you better
Insurance is the subject matter of solicitation. Plans are offered through partner insurers; final premium and terms are set by the insurer.
Questions
Health insurance, asked often
Still unsure? Ask us on WhatsApp and a person replies, not a bot.
My employer already covers me. Do I need my own policy?
Usually yes. Work cover ends the day you leave or retire, often when you are older and buying fresh is costlier, with new waiting periods. A modest personal policy bought now keeps its waiting periods running in the background.
What is a super top-up?
A policy that pays only after your yearly medical bills cross a set amount, called the deductible. With a ₹5 lakh base policy and a ₹5 lakh deductible, the top-up covers bills above ₹5 lakh, at a much lower premium than raising the base cover.
Can I move my existing policy to another insurer?
Yes, this is called porting. You apply before renewal, and the waiting period you have already served is generally carried over up to your earlier sum insured. We check whether the new plan is really better before you switch.
Should I declare a small health issue like thyroid or blood pressure?
Always. Non-disclosure is a common reason for claim rejection. Declared conditions may mean a waiting period or a slightly higher premium, but the cover then holds when you need it.
Do you charge for the comparison?
No. We are paid by partner insurers when a policy is bought through us. That is why we show you more than one option and explain what each one leaves out.