New Delhi. On Monday, a big news of a train accident came from West Bengal. This accident happened in New Jalpaiguri. In this accident, a goods train collided with the Kanchanjunga Express in which many bogies of the train were damaged. So far 15 people have been reported dead in the accident while many others are injured.

Railway accidents cause loss of life and property on a large scale. Keeping these incidents in mind, Indian Railways has provided the facility of train insurance for passengers.

The premium of this insurance is only 45 paise and it provides a cover of up to Rs 10 lakh. Many passengers are not aware of this insurance, due to which they are not able to avail its benefits.  

Today we will tell you in detail about Train Travel Insurance.

What is train travel insurance?

While booking tickets online, the option of railway insurance comes. After selecting the insurance option, a message is sent to the passenger's mobile number and email ID. This message contains the name of the insurance company and the certificate number which is very useful at the time of claim. Apart from this, the helpline number of the insurance company is also available, from where inquiries can be made.

Now the question arises that when does one get the insurance, whenever there is a railway accident like a train derailing or colliding with another train, in such an accident one gets the benefit of rail travel insurance.

But if the passenger commits suicide or becomes a victim of any other accident during the journey, then Indian Railways does not provide insurance.  

All class passengers get the benefit of railway insurance. But if the passenger has bought the ticket from the counter, then he will not get the benefit of insurance. This means that insurance is available only on online ticket booking. Apart from this, insurance is not available on half tickets of children also.

The benefit of travel insurance is available only to passengers with confirmed tickets. This means that those with waiting tickets do not get the benefit of this insurance.

What is the process for claiming Railway Travel Insurance?

Insurance claim can be made within 4 months of the train accident. The injured person, nominee or his heir can claim the insurance. For insurance claim, an application has to be made to the insurance company and the relevant documents have to be submitted.

If a passenger dies or becomes completely disabled in a railway accident, he gets a claim of up to Rs 10 lakh. At the same time, a permanently disabled passenger gets a claim of Rs 7.5 lakh and an injured passenger gets a claim of Rs 2 lakh for treatment.

These documents are necessary for claim

• There should be a confirmation report of the accident issued by the Railway Authority.
• The accident claim form must be signed by the nominee and legal heir.  
• The disabled passenger has to provide photographs before and after the accident.
• The passenger has to submit documents related to hospitalization.
• The doctor's final report has to be attached.
• All bills must have number, signature and stamp.
• In a railway accident, the official report containing the details of the deceased passenger also has to be attached.
• NEFT details and cancelled cheque also have to be submitted.