Bought a used car: Renew insurance now or wait until name transfer?

I will be taking possession of the car tomorrow, but the name transfer process takes 45 days.

BHPian raptor_diwan recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Hello everyone,

I require a quick suggestion regarding insurance renewal. I am in the process of purchasing a used car from Maruti True Value, and the insurance for that car is set to expire next month, within 30 days. I will be taking possession of the car tomorrow, but the name transfer process takes 45 days, as specified by Maruti.

Should I wait for the insurance to expire and then, once the RC is changed, put the insurance in my name, thus avoiding the need to return to them for a name change? This option would involve the risk of keeping the car uninsured for two weeks. (I've heard that the premium may increase if the policy expires. I'm also considering switching to a different insurance provider.)

Alternatively, should I renew the insurance in the old customer's name and then, after the RC change, transfer the name again? Or is there a way to arrange insurance without changing the RC, perhaps using a selling agreement or a similar approach?

30 days until the insurance expires and a 45-day duration for the name change process? There's a 15-day gap between them, and the name change process may take even longer. What is your opinion on this?

Here's what BHPian fordday had to say on the matter:

Renew the insurance now, no ifs and buts.

Your RC name change can get stuck if insurance expires during that time.

You can easily do an insurance transfer to your name later on. It's an online process without the need to visit them.

Here's what BHPian ex-innova-guy had to say on the matter:

I will give you a real-life example of why not to lapse an insurance policy or travel without it even if the process is too long.

A tenant in our Apartment premises was driving down from Mumbai to Mangaon in his WagonR. The insurance policy had lapsed just a couple of days before and since this was during COVID, he simply chose to ignore it as he wouldn’t drive it much. The drive is just around ~180km (4hrs) and he likes to travel at night so left around 12 am. Hardly 15km from the destination he slept at the wheel and ended up in a small ditch at 3:30 am! Mind you these are rural roads and thus not many cars around, so he had to call us to get him and his family out. The next day he had to tow his car and subsequently repair the car at his own expense. A small expense on insurance could have spared him such a huge loss since he had to change the tyres too.

BHPian raptor_diwan came back with an update:

Appreciate your suggestions, I've decided to go ahead and renew the insurance in the current owner's name and handle the name transfer at a later time. Thank you!!

I thought there might be an alternative approach. Perhaps I can insure the car in my name directly by providing a name transfer request document or a sale agreement as evidence.

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