Those who purchase train tickets through the IRCTC website are now automatically covered by a 10 lakh INR insurance policy. Those who do not desire insurance coverage must opt out by selecting the corresponding button.

The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation Ltd (IRCTC) has changed the scheme to enable opting out of a 10 lakh rupee (INR) personal accident insurance plan, instead of opting in.

In other words, passengers who purchase their train tickets through the IRCTC portal are now automatically covered for 10 lakh INR, according to a senior insurance industry official.

Those who do not desire insurance coverage must opt out by selecting the appropriate button.

Inexplicably, the premium for a 10 lakh INR personal accident insurance policy is only 0.35 paise. The policy provides coverage for mortality, disability, and medical expenses resulting from a train accident during travel.

Two non-life insurers, SBI General Insurance Company Ltd and Liberty General Insurance Company Ltd, provide the insurance coverage.

According to the industry official, the shift may be a result of the tragic train accident that occurred in Odisha last month, in which 288 passengers were killed and over 1,000 were injured. According to the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI), 624 passengers were insured under the IRCTC travel accident insurance scheme. Due to the Odisha train accident, the two insurers have received a total of 22 claims for disability and hospitalisation totaling INR 60,52 lakh, but no claims for death have been filed.
Five claims have been filed with Liberty General Insurance, of which two claims for medical expenses totaling INR 17,800 have been resolved and three claims totaling INR 6 lakh are pending.

In the case of SBI General Insurance, the insurer has settled two claims for a total of INR 2.25 lakh, out of seventeen claims totaling INR 50.52 lakh for disability and medical expenses.

In relation to the Odisha train accident, SBI General Insurance has received a total of 15 claims totaling INR 48.27 lakh. It has denied two claims because the policy does not cover outpatient treatment costs.