Insurance Glossary

Deductible

A fixed amount you pay out of pocket before your insurance starts paying for a claim.

In plain English

A fixed amount you pay out of pocket before your insurance starts paying for a claim.

A deductible is common in super top-up health policies and some vehicle and property policies. Unlike co-payment (a percentage), a deductible is a fixed rupee amount — for example, a super top-up with a ₹3 lakh deductible only starts paying once your base policy plus your own payments cross ₹3 lakh in a policy year.

Choosing a higher deductible generally lowers your premium, which makes deductible-based super top-ups a cost-efficient way to add a large amount of cover on top of a base policy.

Example

You have a base health policy of ₹3 lakh and a super top-up with a ₹3 lakh deductible. A ₹5 lakh hospital bill is paid entirely by your base policy (₹3 lakh) plus ₹2 lakh from the top-up, since the deductible was already met by the base policy's payout.

Found this term in your policy and still unsure?

Send us a photo or PDF of the clause on WhatsApp and we'll explain exactly what it means for you.

Chat on WhatsApp