A fall, a burn … no one is immune to an accident in everyday life and the inconvenience that can follow. Here is what bodily insurance supports.
Launched eight years ago, the guarantee of life accidents was to end the observation that “the victims of accidents were better compensated for their material damage (house, car, scooter …) than for their bodily injury”, reports the French Federation of Insurance Companies (FFSA). This is not quite the case yet, but almost. Thus, in 2006, the amount of bodily insurance compensation reached 14.2 billion euros, against 17.8 billion euros as a comparison for the automobile. To support the development of their offers, insurance companies have implemented better compensation in addition to the care provided for by social security, in particular in the event of disability and physiological or moral damage.
Package or compensation services
The benefits paid within 5 months after the date when the insurer to knowledge of the disaster, and one month after the victim’s agreement on the amounts proposed, are carried out either on the basis of a package or in the form of compensation.
For the package, the reference scales are specified on the insurance contract and do not take into account the damage suffered. This gives the possibility of accumulating several services for the same accident. In addition, in the case of a package, there will be no recourse from the insurer to search for a third -party person, when there is one. The packages are most often involved in cases of deadly body accident or causing temporary or permanent disability.
For compensation, the amount of the service will depend on the damage suffered to put the insured in a situation “which would have been his if the accident had not taken place,” said the FFSA. All damages are taken into account: economic, physiological, including rights. This also implies assessing the insured’s degree of responsibility in the accident and applying, if necessary, franchises or guarantees.
Three main types of accidents are generally covered. First, so -called life accidents, excluding those on the road. They correspond to sudden and unforeseen dramas whether during professional activities, during leisure or at home. They also incorporate accidents linked to a natural disaster or even the collapse of a store roof, food poisoning, etc. Then, accidents linked to an attack or offenses such as physical assault. To be covered, the insured must not have participated in the realization of the incriminated facts. Finally, medical accidents. This involves taking into account accidents during a surgical operation, a medical examination or even those linked to an inappropriate drug treatment.
Complementarity between an individual and collective contract
The guarantee of accidents in life covers damage according to the texts of law but also of the degree of disability following the corporeal disaster when it is greater than 30 %. The care can go as far as reimbursement of the remuneration of the person hired to assist the insured, if the state of the latter requires it. It also takes into account the aesthetic consequences on the person, without forgetting the compensation linked to the impossibility of practicing certain activities again, due to the handicap that occurred during the bodily accident. It is on the basis of an argued medical report that the insurer will appreciate the extent of the consequences.
To benefit from these services, the subscription to body insurance is carried out individually or collectively. According to FFSA data, the trend goes for an individualization, but the balance of power remains balanced. Attention ! Individual and collective guarantees do not cover all accidents. They are the subject of distinctions according to the type of accident or activity practiced.
In the case of individual insurance, it is therefore necessary to read the contract carefully to check the extent and negotiate, with the insurer, its extension if certain types of accident are not covered, or even ask, if this is not the case, to subscribe to a guarantee of accidents in life.
Regarding collective insurance, they are attached to sports federations, associations, etc. The guarantees only work if the accident occurs in the context of the activities carried out in these structures. Outside, individual body insurance plays.