What Documents Should You Keep for an Insurance Policy?

Documents every policy should have on file

• The policy schedule or policy bond. This is the document that states who is insured, for how much, for what period and on what terms.
• The policy wording, which lists inclusions, exclusions and conditions. Insurers usually provide it as a separate PDF.
• The proposal form you filled in when buying the policy. What you declared there is what the insurer will check at claim time.
• Premium receipts, at least for the current year. They prove the policy is in force and are needed for tax deductions where these apply.
• Any endorsements: written changes made after purchase, such as a change of address, nominee or sum insured.

Health insurance

Keep the health card or e-card for every insured member where it can be reached from a phone. For cashless treatment the hospital desk will ask for it along with photo identity.

Medical records matter more than most people expect. Keep discharge summaries, diagnostic reports and prescriptions for any significant treatment, even if you did not claim for it. They establish your medical history if a later claim is questioned, and they are required if you move your policy to another insurer.

For reimbursement claims, insurers ask for original bills, the discharge summary, payment receipts, investigation reports and pharmacy bills with prescriptions. Collect these before leaving the hospital; getting duplicates later is slow.

Life insurance

The original policy bond is the key document and should be stored safely. Keep a copy of the nominee details and make sure the nominee knows where the bond is. Keep the age and identity proof you submitted, and the receipts for premiums paid.

For a claim, the family will need the death certificate, the policy bond, the claimant's identity proof and bank details. Depending on the circumstances, the insurer may ask for medical or hospital records.

Motor insurance

• The current policy certificate, carried in the vehicle or on your phone.
• The registration certificate and your driving licence.
• The previous year's policy, which shows your no-claim bonus.
• For a claim: photographs of the damage, the repair estimate and, for theft or third-party incidents, a copy of the police report.

Travel and business policies

For travel, keep the policy certificate and the insurer's emergency assistance number accessible offline, and retain boarding passes and receipts until you are home. For a business policy, the documents that decide a claim are the ones that prove value: stock registers, purchase invoices, asset lists and, where relevant, the rent agreement and business registration. Keep copies away from the insured premises.

How long to keep them

Keep the policy schedule and receipts for as long as the policy is active, and for a few years after it ends in case of a late claim or a tax query. Life policy bonds should be kept until the benefit is paid. Medical records are worth keeping indefinitely.

Storing documents so they are usable

• Scan or download each document as a PDF and name it clearly.
• Group files by policy rather than by date received.
• Keep originals of policy bonds and bills in one physical folder.
• Make sure one other family member can reach both the digital and the physical copies.

In Policy Mitra, documents are filed under five categories: policy documents, KYC, claims, receipts and other. Each can be linked to a policy, so opening a policy shows its papers. If your advisor needs something from you, the request appears in your documents list until you upload it.