'Insured for Accident?' - A Study on Awareness and Uptake of Accident Insurance Among Urban Street Vendors in Chennai, India

Abstract

Street vendors form an integral section of urban economies with meager incomes. They conduct their business amidst insecurity. The scope of this paper has specific reference to personal accident policy and how it is perceived as a provider of cover by the street vendors. A personal accident policy usually covers accidental death, accidental permanent total or partial disability, accidental temporary permanent disability and some companies may add a few more features. This study aims to look at the risk perception, awareness and uptake of accident insurance among street vendors. The study was carried out in Chennai Metropolitan city through a structured questionnaire. It was seen that the awareness of street vendors on micro insurance schemes and other commercial General Insurance Schemes was very low. There was poor awareness of insurance to cover the risks that they faced. Most times their awareness was limited to life and health insurance, both of which are well advertised but are not comprehensive enough to cover disabilities. There is little knowledge of accident insurance policies.