Money Basics · Insurance done right

Critical illness riders

A critical illness (CI) rider or plan pays you a lump sum if you're diagnosed with specific life-threatening diseases, even if you survive. This is different from health insurance, which pays hospital bills.

Why critical illness cover matters

When you're diagnosed with cancer, a major heart attack, or kidney failure:

1. Hospital bills pile up (health insurance covers this)

2. You may be unable to work for months or years (income stops)

3. Your lifestyle costs don't stop. Rent, EMIs, groceries, loans

A ₹25–50 lakh CI lump sum replaces your income while you recover, helps repay EMIs, and funds alternative treatments that health insurance doesn't cover.

> CI cover pays on DIAGNOSIS, not hospitalisation. You get ₹25 lakh deposited in your account when the disease is confirmed. What you do with it is up to you.

What's typically covered

• Cancer (of specified severity)
• Open heart surgery / coronary artery bypass
• Kidney failure requiring dialysis
• Major organ transplant
• Stroke resulting in permanent symptoms
• Paralysis

Number of diseases covered varies: basic plans cover 10–15, comprehensive plans cover 30–60.

₹8,000–15,000Annual premium for ₹25L CI cover at age 25

Rider vs standalone plan

CI can be added as a rider to your term plan (convenient, typically cheaper) or bought as a standalone policy (more flexibility, wider disease coverage).

When to buy

If you have dependent family members, an ongoing home loan, or significant EMIs, CI cover does a job nothing else does. Size it against what actually has to be paid while you cannot work: the income that stops for a recovery measured in months or years, the treatment costs health insurance does not reimburse, and the EMIs that carry on at full size throughout. ₹25–50 lakh is a common range for young professionals. Against ₹50,000 a month of costs, ₹25 lakh is roughly four years of runway, not a few months of salary.

Takeaway. Critical illness cover pays a lump sum on diagnosis. Replacing income while you recover. Buy it alongside health insurance, not instead of it.