Many health insurance policies do not provide maternity cover. Now if you add a maternity cover rider with such a policy, then the rider will cover certain expenses during childbirth. The coverage will primarily be for delivery expenses but may be restricted for pre and post-delivery expenses. It is also possible that other expenses like newborn baby expenses or vaccinations might not be covered at all. However, this rider can be availed after the waiting period, which is usually 24 months but can extend up to 72 months also in some plans.

A policyholder can buy a critical illness rider with his health insurance policy. And on being diagnosed with one of the listed critical illnesses in the policy, the insurance company will pay him the sum assured for the rider. Say you have a Rs 10 lakh health insurance policy and with that, you have a Rs 5 lakh critical illness rider. Now on being diagnosed with one of the critical illnesses in the policy, you would be paid Rs 5 lakh in a lump sum. Critical illness riders can also be bought with term insurance plans or as a standalone policy. .

Under this rider, if a policyholder is disabled due to an accident then, the insurer will pay him the sum assured (totally or partially) for the rider. However, the amount that would be paid would depend on the severity of the injury. In case the policyholder is permanently disabled, i.e. there is loss of sight (for both eyes), loss of two limbs, loss of one limb and one eye, and he/she is unable to work, then the insurance company will pay him/her the entire sum assured. But, in case he/she is partially disabled and can fend for himself/herself, then the insurance company will pay the part of the sum assured (the amount will be determined by the insurer) depending on the injury. For instance, if the policyholder loses one eye or one limb, he/she would receive 50% of the sum assured. But, if he/she loses hearing in one ear, then he/she will receive 15% of the sum assured.

Many insurance policies come with a cap on room rent. For example, suppose you have a health insurance policy with a room rent cap of Rs 2,000 per day. Now, if you are hospitalized and for which the per day room rent is Rs 4,000, then you have to pay the extra amount from your pocket. Now if you add a room rent waiver rider with your policy you can avail the room you of your choice (subject to minor conditions like it cannot be a suite) without paying extra money.

Under this rider, in case of hospitalization, the insured receives a cash amount for all the days he/she has been hospitalized. The amount differs from policy to policy. This acts as a compensatory allowance for loss of pay during hospitalization. However, for availing most daily hospital cash plans you need to be hospitalized for at least 24 hours to avail of this benefit.