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What optional covers are and how they differ from your base policy
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Introduction
Buy the same Comprehensive plan as your neighbour, and you could still end up with very different protection. The difference usually comes down to optional covers, the extra pieces of car insurance you choose and pay for separately, on top of what your base policy already includes.
Keep in mind
Optional covers are chosen separately, not included in a base policy by default
Each optional cover adds a small premium in exchange for a specific protection
Third-Party cover cannot carry optional covers, only Comprehensive and Own Damage can
The right mix usually depends on your car's age and how you use it
A note on terminology
You may hear optional covers called add-ons or attachments in the wider insurance industry. At Kiwi Insurance, we use the term optional covers in our policy documents. All three terms mean the same thing: extra protection you can choose on top of your base policy.
What optional covers mean for your policy
Your base car insurance policy, whether Third-Party, Own Damage or Comprehensive, covers a defined set of situations. Optional covers add extra protection for specific costs or situations that your base policy may not cover.
Each optional cover is designed for a particular gap. You can choose the ones that make sense for your car and your needs, rather than paying for a fixed set of extras.
For example, optional covers can help you:
Cover depreciation
A Zero Depreciation cover can reduce or remove the depreciation deduction on eligible replaced parts.
Cover the gap between IDV and invoice value
Return to Invoice cover can help cover the difference between your car's IDV and its original invoice value in case of a total loss, subject to the policy terms.
Cover specific costs not included in a standard claim
Consumables Cover can cover items such as engine oil, nuts and bolts, while Key Protect can cover certain costs related to lost or damaged keys.
The right optional covers depend on your car, how you use it and the risks you want additional protection against.
Why your base policy leaves some gaps
A standard Own Damage or Comprehensive policy is priced to cover the core promise, repairing or replacing your car after an accident, theft, or damage from an insured event. It is not priced to remove every deduction that can apply during a claim, such as depreciation on parts.
Extra covers in car insurance exist because insurers price the base policy for the average driver, not for every situation. If your car is new, driven mostly in the city, or fitted with expensive accessories, some of these gaps matter more to you than they would to someone else.
This is not about the base policy being weak. Third-Party cover, Own Damage, and Comprehensive all meet a clear promise on their own. Optional covers simply let you add protection for specific situations that matter to you and your car.
How are optional cover prices decided?
Each optional cover is priced separately based on the protection it provides. The cost can vary depending on factors such as:
Your car's age
Covers such as Zero Depreciation may cost more for older cars because depreciation on their parts is higher.
Your car's IDV
The IDV can affect the price of covers linked to the value of your car, such as Return to Invoice.
The type of cover
Covers with a higher potential payout or wider protection may cost more than covers that protect against smaller expenses.
The risk being covered
The price also depends on how likely the covered event is and what it could cost the insurer.
This is why the same optional cover can cost noticeably different amounts for two different cars, even from the same insurer. The price depends on the specific protection the cover provides and the details of your car.
Choosing optional covers that match your car
You choose optional covers when you buy or renew your car insurance policy, and each one you add increases your premium by a small amount. You are not required to take all of them together, and most insurers let you pick only the ones relevant to your car.
Some optional covers make more sense at certain stages. A cover that removes depreciation on replaced parts is usually most useful on a newer car, while a cover for daily commuting support may matter more if you drive long distances regularly.
This is also why the same optional cover can matter a great deal to one driver and very little to another. A five-year-old car with a lower IDV benefits less from some covers than a car bought this year.
What one optional cover can change in a claim
For example, say two drivers each have a repair bill of ₹20,000 after an accident, and both hold a Comprehensive policy with the same compulsory deductible. One of them has also chosen an optional cover that removes the depreciation cut on replaced parts, and the other has not.
Without that optional cover, the driver typically pays their deductible plus a share of the bill linked to depreciation on the parts replaced. With it, that depreciation share is covered, so the driver pays only the deductible. The repair itself is identical, only the amount each driver pays from their own pocket differs.
Popular optional covers worth knowing
There are several optional covers you are likely to come across when comparing car insurance. Each one covers a different situation or expense that may not be included in your base policy. Here’s a quick look at some of the more common ones and what they cover.
This is not the full list available, and not every insurer offers all eight in the same form. You can see Kiwi Insurance's optional covers and check which of these actually apply to your car.
Kiwi's optional covers you will not find everywhere
Alongside the standard optional covers above, Kiwi Insurance offers some that are only available with Kiwi. Super NCB is the clearest example: instead of a standard No Claim Bonus that can drop sharply after a single claim, Super NCB steps down by only one level, and builds up to 90% over time, up to 40% more discount than a standard No Claim Bonus.
Your discount is protected
A claim does not take your Super NCB back to zero.
It can build higher
Super NCB can reach up to 90%, compared with a standard No Claim Bonus.
You choose it separately
Super NCB is an optional cover that you can choose along with other optional covers you need.
Conclusion
Optional covers work best when they are chosen deliberately, not added as a default bundle. Look at your car's age, how you use it, and where your base policy leaves a gap, then add only the optional covers that close that gap. Reviewing this list at every renewal, rather than repeating the same combination automatically, keeps your premium spent on protection you actually need.
Written by
Reuben Solomon
Lead Content Writer
Reviewed by
Rupinderjit Singh
Head - Tech Product & Digital Business
Frequently asked questions
An optional cover is extra protection you choose and pay for separately, on top of your base car insurance policy. It is not included automatically, and you decide which ones are worth adding based on your car and how you use it.