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Insurance Plans Comparison

Niva Bupa Health Companion Variant 3 vs ICICI Lombard Golden Shield

Make an informed decision with our detailed side-by-side comparison of top health insurance policies. Compare...

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Niva Bupa

Health Companion Variant 3

High-cover family health insurance from ₹15 Lakh to ₹1 Crore with any room (except suite), 20% No Claim Bonus and a yearly refill.

What Makes It Special:

A high Sum Insured version of Health Companion (₹15 Lakh to ₹1 Crore) with near-any-room eligibility, a 100% refill and the highest animal-bite vaccination and Hospital Cash limits among Variants 1 to 3.

Best For:

  • Existing Health Companion customers renewing on the Variant 3 structure

  • People wanting an optional deductible to reduce premium

  • Buyers who want a No Claim Bonus of 20% per claim-free year

  • People who want to choose almost any hospital room

  • Families wanting a high Sum Insured of ₹15 Lakh or more

VS
ICICI Lombard

Golden Shield

Cover hospital care for seniors, with a twin-sharing room below ₹10 lakh and a single private AC room from ₹10 lakh, a 50% co-pay on every admissible claim, and 60 days before admission plus 180 days after discharge.

What Makes It Special:

ICICI Lombard Golden Shield is designed for senior citizens and offers hospitalisation cover through individual and family floater options. Benefits include inpatient treatment, daycare procedures, AYUSH hospitalisation, pre- and post-hospitalisation expenses, domiciliary treatment and a Reset Benefit. The policy also offers a Loyalty Bonus and optional features such as Claim...

Best For:

  • Buyers seeking additional features such as Claim Protector or Care Management Plus, subject to availability and eligibility.

  • Customers who want to evaluate options for reducing the policy's standard co-payment.

  • Buyers who want a reset feature for eligible subsequent hospitalisation claims.

  • Older couples looking for a shared family floater or individual cover options.

  • Senior citizens seeking health insurance for eligible hospitalisation expenses.

Insurance Plans Comparison

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Quick Decision Guide

  • Things to Consider: Non-payable consumables in Annexure I are not covered, and no consumables add-on is listed for this variant.

  • Things to Consider: Maternity and OPD consultations are not covered.

  • Things to Consider: Refill cannot be used for the same illness in the same year.

  • Things to Consider: Pre-existing diseases are covered only after 36 months.

  • Things to Consider: Pre and post hospitalisation is limited to 30 and 60 days.

  • Reasons to Consider: Annual health check-up from the second year and animal-bite vaccination up to ₹7,500.

  • Reasons to Consider: 100% refill of Base Sum Insured once a year for a different illness.

  • Reasons to Consider: 20% No Claim Bonus per claim-free year, up to 100% of Base Sum Insured.

  • Reasons to Consider: Any room covered up to Sum Insured, except Suite or above.

  • Reasons to Consider: High Sum Insured options from ₹15 Lakh to ₹1 Crore.

  • Compare the disease-specific sublimits with your healthcare needs, especially for cataract, cardiovascular treatment, cancer and renal conditions.

  • Review the 24-month PED and specified-disease waiting periods, along with the separate 90-day exclusion for hypertension, diabetes and cardiac conditions.

  • Check the room category linked to your sum insured to avoid unexpected proportionate deductions.

  • Review the base 50% co-payment carefully and compare the additional premium for reducing it to 40%, 30% or 20%.

  • Select a sum insured based on expected medical expenses and confirm that the desired option is available for your age and health profile.

Insurance Plans Comparison

Detailed Features Comparison

Compare the key features of different health insurance plans

Health Companion Variant 3
Health Companion Variant 3

Health Insurance Plan

Brochure

VS
Golden Shield
Golden Shield

Health Insurance Plan

Brochure

Room Rent

Health Companion Variant 3

Covered up to Sum Insured, any room except Suite or above; proportionate deduction if a higher category is used

VS

Golden Shield

ICICI Lombard's Health Shield plan offers comprehensive coverage with no specific capping on room rent or ICU charges.

ICU Charges

Health Companion Variant 3

Covered up to Sum Insured as part of In-patient Care

VS

Golden Shield

Covered under eligible inpatient hospitalisation, subject to the annual sum insured and applicable policy conditions.

Advanced Treatments

Health Companion Variant 3

Information Unavailable

VS

Golden Shield

The plan covers advanced treatments like robotic surgeries, immunotherapy, oral chemotherapy, stem cell therapy, and minimally invasive procedures for various conditions.

Co-payment

Health Companion Variant 3

No co-payment in base plan; 20% co-payment applies only under the legacy "Treatment only in Tiered Network" option (renewal customers who already chose it) for reimbursement treatment in 9 metro cities

VS

Golden Shield

The ICICI Lombard Golden Shield plan includes a mandatory 50% co-payment, meaning policyholders are responsible for half of the admissible claim amount, while the insurer covers the remaining 50%. This co-payment applies to all claims made under the policy.

Disease-wise sublimits

Health Companion Variant 3

No disease-wise sublimits stated; benefit limits apply to road ambulance (₹3,000), animal-bite vaccination (₹7,500) and Hospital Cash

VS

Golden Shield

Yes. Cataract and specified cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, cancer, renal, long-bone/joint and robotic-surgery treatments have limits that vary by sum insured.

Cashless Healthcare Providers

Health Companion Variant 3

Cashless at Niva Bupa network hospitals (10,000+ per Niva Bupa Annual Report FY 2024-25; Requires verification for current count)

VS

Golden Shield

10,896+ hospitals across India.

Restoration Benefit

Health Companion Variant 3

Refill up to 100% of Base Sum Insured, once per policy year, for subsequent claims of a different illness only (after Base SI and NCB are exhausted)

VS

Golden Shield

Unlimited Reset Benefit of up to 100% of the annual sum insured for eligible subsequent claims. It does not apply to the first claim and has restrictions for the same illness or related complications.

Cumulative Bonus

Health Companion Variant 3

No Claim Bonus of 20% of expiring Base Sum Insured per claim-free year, up to 100%; NCB is not increased in a year following a claim

VS

Golden Shield

Loyalty Bonus accumulates under the policy's renewal rules; accrued bonus is not reduced merely because a claim is made.

Daycare Treatment

Health Companion Variant 3

Day care treatments (less than 24 hours) covered up to Sum Insured, incl. chemotherapy, radiotherapy and dialysis

VS

Golden Shield

Covered under the policy. 

Consumable Cover

Health Companion Variant 3

Consumables directly part of treatment (IV fluids, injection administration, medicines) covered under In-patient Care; non-payable items in Annexure I List I not covered; no consumables add-on stated for Variant 3

VS

Golden Shield

Claim Protector is available as an optional cover for eligible non-medical items associated with an accepted inpatient claim.

AYUSH Treatment

Health Companion Variant 3

In-patient Ayurveda, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy in an AYUSH Hospital covered up to Sum Insured

VS

Golden Shield

Covered under this policy

Initial Waiting Period

Health Companion Variant 3

30 Days (not applicable to accidents)

VS

Golden Shield

30 days for illnesses, except covered accident-related hospitalisation.

Specific Waiting Period

Health Companion Variant 3

24 Months for listed conditions (incl. cataract, hernia, joint disorders, chronic kidney disease, internal congenital anomaly); not applicable to accidents; cancer covered after 30 days

VS

Golden Shield

24 months for listed diseases and procedures.

PED Waiting Period

Health Companion Variant 3

36 Months

VS

Golden Shield

24 months of continuous coverage for declared and accepted pre-existing diseases.

Modern Treatment

Health Companion Variant 3

Covered up to Sum Insured (12 listed treatments incl. robotic surgery, oral chemotherapy, deep brain stimulation, stem cell therapy for haematological conditions)

VS

Golden Shield

Listed modern treatments are covered up to the annual sum insured, subject to specified sublimits.

Annual Health Checkup

Health Companion Variant 3

Annual, from 2nd policy year (on renewal), for insured aged 18+; cashless at empanelled providers; defined test list (CBC, urine, ESR, HbA1c, cholesterol, HDL, LDL, urea, KFT)

VS

Golden Shield

Information Unavailable

Pre-Hospitalisation

Health Companion Variant 3

Up to 30 Days, covered up to Sum Insured (reimbursement basis)

VS

Golden Shield

60 days before hospitalisation, subject to policy terms and the accepted inpatient claim.

Post-Hospitalisation

Health Companion Variant 3

Up to 60 Days, covered up to Sum Insured (reimbursement basis)

VS

Golden Shield

Up to 7% of hospitalisation expenses, subject to a maximum of ₹5,000 for ₹3–5 lakh sum insured, ₹7,000 for ₹10–15 lakh, and ₹10,000 for ₹20–50 lakh.

Outpatient Department Cover (OPD Expense)

Health Companion Variant 3

Not covered; only OPD vaccination after an animal bite, up to ₹7,500

VS

Golden Shield

Not included as a general standard reimbursement benefit. Outpatient consultations may be available through the optional Care Management Plus Program.

Deductible Option

Health Companion Variant 3

Optional Annual Aggregate Deductible of ₹1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 10 Lakh

VS

Golden Shield

Optional voluntary deductible of 20% of the annual sum insured, applied on an aggregate basis during the policy year.

Coverage Options

Health Companion Variant 3

Base Sum Insured ₹15 Lakh, 20 Lakh, 30 Lakh, 50 Lakh, 1 Crore; Individual or Family Floater

VS

Golden Shield

Individual or family floater; optional Claim Protector, reduced co-payment, voluntary deductible and Care Management Plus Program.

Claim Settlement Ratio

Health Companion Variant 3

96.7% of claims settled (by number) for Health Companion in FY 2025-26 (all Health Companion UINs reported together). Source: Niva Bupa Public Disclosures FY2025-26 (Form NL-47), https://transactions.nivabupa.com/pages/doc/pub-dis/quarterly-reports/Website-Public-Disclosures-Mar-2026.pdf. Company-level: 94.4% (Niva Bupa Annual Report FY 2025-26)

VS

Golden Shield

FY 24-25: ~84%

Maternity Cover

Health Companion Variant 3

Not covered (Maternity excluded, Code Excl18)

VS

Golden Shield

Not covered under this senior-citizen-focused plan.

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