Filing insurance claims can be painful. Especially if you are not armed with the relevant information.

What do you do if your car gets bashed up at an intersection? Do you tow your car to the nearest garage and then make an insurance reimbursement claim? Or, do you search for a cashless garage and wait for your insurance company auditor to visit and check the damage?

Apparently, none of the above.

With competition in the general insurance sector heating up, companies are busy innovating in order to provide value-added services to existing customers.

Earlier this week, IFFCO-Tokio General Insurance tied-up with Assist America for travel emergency assistance services to its existing medi-shield policy holders.

Now if you are travelling within India and are faced with a medical emergency 150 kilometres from home, you are entitled to emergency help from Assist America.

Value additions to existing policies is a buzzword in the insurance sector, more so in newly detariffed segments like motor and fire insurance where companies are already brainstorming on possible innovations to otherwise staid policies.

Experts believe this is the only way companies can differentiate their products from others in the market.

When Bajaj Allianz announced an in-house health administration team to administer hospitalisation claims, its aim was to provide customers with a one-stop destination for their entire claims process, thus bringing down turn-around time.

The company also prides itself on being the first and only to provide SMS alerts on motor claims.

"Before detariffing in the sector, innovation in insurance was restricted to providing faster, seamless service. But now companies will be able to differentiate their products through value-added services. So, more than simply giving customers additional services on a product, this is about being able to differentiate themselves from competitors," explains Shashwat Sharma, associate director, KPMG.

Green Channel Settlement, an initiative of TATA AIG in its auto insurance policy, is a first in the motor industry and makes accident claims and repairs a smooth ride.

One call to a toll-free number and the company will have your damaged car picked up from your home, the claim estimate calculated, the car repaired and cleaned, the dues paid and also hand you a warranty on the mechanical repairs.

"In future, innovative services are going to be the selling factor for policies," believes Ajit Narain, CEO, IFFCO-Tokio.

Currently though, value-added services may not be getting the attention they demand. Since detariffing happened only this year, the wordings for policies under the detariffed regime (65 per cent of the total insurance products) have not yet been changed.

Industry experts clarify that in 2008, once the text is changed, there will be a "bloodbath" in the market with companies stepping over each other with innovative services.

Robin Roy, associate director, PricewaterhouseCoopers elaborates, "Private sector companies will not only be fighting amongst themselves but also against government sector companies that currently have far greater reach and offer very good services."

He emphasises that the customer should take advantage of this competitive environment to avail of the fantastic services being offered. Whoever said royal treatment was not for everyone?