Insurance
Moving Insurance in India, Explained Without the Jargon
The gap between what people assume is insured and what actually is causes more bad feeling than anything else in this business. Here is the plain version.
"Insurance included" is one of the most misleading phrases in this industry. It is usually true and usually means far less than the customer assumes. Here is what the words actually mean.
Basic transit protection
Included on most moves. Covers loss or damage from specified events during carriage — accident, fire, overturning, and similar. Typically carries a per-item cap that can be surprisingly low, and often a total cap on the consignment.
The question to ask: "What is the maximum payout for a single item?" If your television is worth ₹80,000 and the cap is ₹10,000, you now know something important.
Comprehensive declared-value cover
Purchased separately, priced as a percentage of the value you declare — usually somewhere between 1% and 3%. Covers a much wider range of causes including handling damage, and pays against the declared value rather than a fixed cap.
For a full household over a long distance, or for anything with antiques, art or high-value electronics, this is generally the right choice.
What is excluded, on almost every policy
- Goods you packed yourself. If the mover could not inspect the contents, they cannot be held to the packing. This is the biggest single exclusion and it surprises people every time.
- Pre-existing damage. Which is exactly why the condition inventory matters.
- Cash, jewellery and important documents. These should never go on the truck. Carry them.
- Perishables and plants.
- Mechanical or electrical failure with no external damage. A fridge that stops working with no mark on it is generally not a claim.
- Natural wear, and inherent defect.
The document that decides your claim
The inventory. A written, itemised list with condition noted and photographs, signed at loading and checked at delivery. Without it, a claim becomes an argument about whether the scratch was already there. With it, most claims resolve quickly.
Insist on it. Read it before signing. If it says "10 cartons, assorted" for a household of five, it is not an inventory, it is a receipt.
How to make a claim work
- Note the damage on the delivery sheet before you sign it. This is the single most important step, and it takes thirty seconds.
- Photograph the damage and the packaging it came out of, before disposing of either.
- Report it in writing within the policy's reporting window — usually 24 to 48 hours.
- Submit the inventory, the loading photographs, the delivery sheet and the damage photographs.
- Keep the damaged item until the claim is settled. Assessors sometimes want to see it.
The honest summary
Insurance does not make a bad move good. It converts a catastrophe into an inconvenience, and only if the paperwork was done properly at the start. The inventory, the photographs and the note on the delivery sheet are worth more than the policy wording.