Critical illnesses can strike suddenly, catching you off guard. One moment you may feel perfectly healthy, and the next, you could receive news from a routine medical check-up that you have a life-threatening ailment, such as a tumor on your spine. This is why having critical illness insurance is an essential component of financial planning for many urban Indians. Critical illness insurance can provide coverage for life-threatening conditions like cancer, major organ transplants, multiple sclerosis, third-degree burns, and aorta graft surgery, as well as lifestyle-disabling illnesses such as heart valve replacement/repair, coma of specified severity, total blindness, and end-stage renal disease.

When it comes to critical illness insurance, you typically have three options to choose from:
- Standalone Critical Illness Policy
- Critical Illness Rider with a Health Insurance Product
- Critical Illness Rider with a Life Insurance Product
Let's explore these options and determine what might be the best choice based on your needs:
Coverage Amount:
With a rider, the coverage amount is linked to the base policy, and it cannot exceed 30% of the base policy's coverage amount. In contrast, a standalone policy allows you to select the coverage amount.
Our Suggestion: If you need a higher coverage amount, a standalone policy is the right choice, as it offers more flexibility.
Premium:
Premiums for standalone policies typically remain stable, with potential increases at specific ages. For riders, premiums with life insurance policies remain constant, but with health insurance policies, the premium increases with age. However, standalone policy premiums may be slightly higher than critical illness rider premiums.
Our Suggestion: You can choose to pay lower premiums for a lower coverage amount or higher premiums for more extensive coverage. Opting for higher coverage, which standalone policies offer, is often a prudent choice.
Renewability:
Standalone critical illness policies are generally renewable throughout your lifetime, while critical illness riders are tied to the renewal of the base policy. If the base policy becomes invalid or expires, the rider also becomes invalid.
Our Suggestion: A standalone critical illness policy provides more flexibility in terms of renewability.
Number of Critical Illnesses Covered:
Standalone critical illness plans typically cover a broader range of diseases compared to critical illness riders.
Our Suggestion: If you want comprehensive coverage for as many diseases as possible, a standalone policy is the better choice.
Conclusion:
In all the parameters mentioned above, a standalone critical illness policy emerges as the preferred option due to its flexibility in coverage, stability in premiums, renewability, and broader coverage for critical illnesses.
For any questions or further assistance, you can contact us at 86559-86559 or via email at support@oneinsure.com.