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Reviewed by Finzony Finance TeamLast updated:
Activate Booster is ICICI Lombard's super top-up health plan. It does not pay from the first rupee. You choose a yearly deductible from ₹3 lakh to ₹20 lakh, and the plan pays admissible hospital costs above it, up to the sum insured you pick, which runs from ₹10 lakh to ₹3 crore in the standard options. The deductible is counted across all hospital claims in the policy year, so your base policy's payouts count towards it as well as your own spending. You can buy Activate Booster with or without a base policy, but without one you carry the deductible yourself. It comes in two versions. Plan A has longer pre- and post-hospitalisation cover (90 and 180 days) and adds hospital cover for a surrogate mother and an oocyte donor. Plan B has 60 and 90 days, but adds home care treatment and opens up optional covers such as health check-up, nursing at home, compassionate visit and dependent accommodation. The policy runs for one, two or three years, as an individual or a family floater, and there is no zone-based co-payment.
Super top-up with flexible deductible options
Finzony treats Activate Booster as a tool for someone who already holds a base health policy and wants a much higher ceiling without paying for a large base sum insured. The base cover is plain hospital indemnity: room up to a single private AC room, ICU, doctor fees, day care, AYUSH, a list of newer treatments such as robotic surgery and immunotherapy, and a road ambulance. What matters more is the deductible. It is aggregate for the whole policy year, and it is shared by the family on a floater. If your base sum insured is smaller than the deductible you choose, you carry the gap yourself. Three limits are easy to miss. There is no reset or restore benefit, so once the sum insured is used in a year it is not refilled. Claim Protector and Durable Medical Equipment cover are paid from the sum insured, while most other optional covers have their own limits over and above it. And Plan A and Plan B are not the same: the longer pre- and post-hospitalisation window and surrogate-mother cover sit in Plan A, while home care, health check-up, nursing at home and compassionate visit sit in Plan B. On waiting periods the plan follows the usual retail clocks: 30 days for a new illness, 24 months for a named list of procedures and 36 months for a pre-existing disease, plus 90 days for hypertension, diabetes and cardiac conditions unless you declared them as pre-existing and the insurer accepted them. Jumpstart cuts the pre-existing wait to 30 days for six listed conditions, but it has to be kept for three continuous years. Maternity, outpatient visits and treatment outside India are not part of the policy.
ICICI Lombard Health Insurance
Key Insights
Founded
2001
ICICI Lombard Health Insurance was established 25 years ago and has built strong credibility over time, backed by its long-standing presence in the market.
Claims Experience
86% CSR, calculated as a 3-year average
ICICI Lombard Health Insurance settles 86% of all claims it receives.
Network Hospitals
10,700+
ICICI Lombard Health Insurance has a network of 10,700+ hospitals, ensuring wide accessibility and convenience for policyholders.
The deductible is counted on an aggregate basis for all hospitalisation expenses in the policy year. On an individual policy it applies to each person, and on a floater it is shared by the family. Once your bills for the year, including what your base policy paid, pass the deductible, Activate Booster pays the admissible amount above it, up to the sum insured. Claims under the optional covers do not count towards the deductible.
If your base sum insured is smaller than the deductible, you pay the gap. The deductible options are ₹3, 4, 5, 7.5, 10, 15 and 20 lakh.
Inpatient treatment covers room rent up to a single private AC room, ICU charges, nursing, doctor fees, anaesthesia, blood, oxygen, operation theatre charges, medicines, consumables, prosthetic devices recommended in writing, and investigations linked to the admission, for a stay of at least 24 consecutive hours. Payment is at actuals above the deductible, up to the sum insured.
If you take a room above the category in your schedule, associated expenses such as nursing, OT and doctor fees are paid pro rata. ICU charges are not cut, and no cut applies where the hospital does not bill by room category.
Day care procedures that need less than 24 hours in hospital are covered. The base policy also lists newer treatments: uterine artery embolisation and HIFU, monoclonal antibody immunotherapy, laser prostate vaporisation, stem cell therapy for bone marrow transplant, balloon sinuplasty, oral chemotherapy, robotic surgery, stereotactic radiosurgery, deep brain stimulation, intravitreal injections, bronchial thermoplasty and intra-operative neuro monitoring.
Relevant medical costs are covered before and after an admissible admission, up to the sum insured. Plan A covers 90 days before admission and 180 days after discharge. Plan B covers 60 days before and 90 days after.
Inpatient treatment under Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy is covered up to the sum insured when it is taken at an AYUSH hospital or AYUSH day care centre.
Covers asthma, diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, obesity and coronary artery disease (angioplasty done at least a year earlier) after a 30-day wait, if you declare the condition and ICICI Lombard accepts it.
It can be taken only at inception and for the sum insured chosen then. Once chosen it has to be kept for 3 continuous policy years. It applies to domestic cover only.
If you declare asthma, diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, obesity or coronary artery disease and it is accepted, you get health tracking by medical experts, dietician counselling, help with lifestyle changes and 2 diagnostic check-ups six months apart, cashless.
Conditions or treatments that the policy clearly says it will not cover.
The conditions and procedures below sit behind the 24-month specified disease and procedure wait, even if they begin after the policy starts. Accident claims are not held to this wait, and if one of them is also a pre-existing disease, the longer wait applies. The list follows ICICI Lombard's policy documents for this product; the policy wording is the final reference.
Insurer
ICICI Lombard Health Insurance plans and claim process
The deductible is the amount of admissible hospital bills you must clear in a policy year before Activate Booster pays. It is counted on an aggregate basis across all hospital claims in the year, and your base policy's payouts count towards it. Say your base policy has ₹5 lakh and you choose a ₹5 lakh deductible. In a year with ₹12 lakh of admissible bills, the base policy pays ₹5 lakh, that clears the deductible, and Activate Booster pays the remaining ₹7 lakh. If the base policy had only ₹3 lakh, you would bear the ₹2 lakh gap yourself.
Yes. ICICI Lombard sells it as a standalone policy as well as on top of a base policy. Without a base policy, the whole deductible is yours to pay before the plan starts paying, so it suits people who can absorb that amount or who want protection mainly against very large bills.
Disclaimer: Premium amounts are indicative and may vary based on age, health, and plan selected. Claim settlement ratios are from IRDAI Annual Reports. Finzony is not an insurance broker or agent. Verify all details on the official ICICI Lombard Health Insurance website before purchasing.
Contact Details
1800 2666
Headquarters: ICICI Lombard House, 414, Veer Savarkar Marg, Near Siddhi Vinayak Temple, Prabhadevi, Mumbai - 400025, Maharashtra, India.
The aforementioned ratios have been averaged over three years (FY24-FY26)
You are enrolled only if Jumpstart has been opted. The check-ups are booked through the app or the toll-free number.
Cashless outpatient benefits through the app, in seven plans (A to G): 1 to 12 consultations, ₹500 to ₹7,500 each for routine diagnostics and for pharmacy, up to 12 physiotherapy sessions, and e-counselling and diet sessions (unlimited on the top two plans).
Only insured people up to age 65 at first issue can opt for it, with a 30-day wait. Unused consultations and sessions are not carried forward.
Once an inpatient or day care claim is accepted, items on IRDAI's list of non-payable items that relate to that claim become payable.
It is paid from the annual sum insured, and cover built up by Inflation Protector cannot be used for it.
Raises the annual sum insured at each renewal on a cumulative basis in line with the previous calendar year's consumer price inflation.
If you opt out at a renewal, the increase built up so far is forfeited. It applies only to the annual sum insured.
Covers an air ambulance transfer to the nearest hospital with adequate emergency facilities, up to the annual sum insured.
Meant for life-threatening situations when road ambulance cannot be provided, and the transfer must be certified in writing by a doctor.
Pays to rent or buy listed equipment prescribed after a hospitalisation for the same condition: CPAP machine, ventilator, wheelchair, prosthetic device, suction machine, commode chair, infusion pump, continuous passive motion device after knee replacement, and oxygen concentrator.
Limited to ₹5 lakh within the overall sum insured.
The pre-existing disease wait can be cut from 36 months to 24 or 12 months, and the specified illness wait from 24 months to 12 months.
Both are available only at inception and for the sum insured chosen then. The pre-existing option must be kept for 3 continuous policy years, and the specified illness option for 2.
Consultations and advice on routine health issues from qualified doctors by audio, video, chat or the app, with no limit on the number in a policy year.
Lets you change your room eligibility: any room category without restriction, a twin-sharing room, or a cap of 1% of the sum insured for a normal room and 2% for ICU per day.
Cuts your deductible by 10% at the end of each policy year if you keep renewing, until it reaches 50% of the deductible you chose at the start.
Available only with a deductible of ₹5 lakh or more, and it has to be chosen at inception.
Gives a 10% discount on every renewal premium, including the first year.
Treatment must be taken at a hospital on the Preferred Provider Network list. A 20% co-payment applies to every claim at a hospital outside that list.
Covers NRIs and OCIs for accidental emergencies only, with an extra 25% premium discount.
You must live abroad for the whole policy year, show proof of overseas residence at each renewal and hold an Indian bank account. The discount runs for at most five continuous policy years.
Health check-up pays for a cashless package for adults up to 0.5% of the sum insured, with a maximum of ₹5,000. Nursing at home pays up to ₹2,000 a day for up to 10 days after hospitalisation. Compassionate Visit reimburses an economy ticket for a family member if your stay passes 5 days, up to ₹20,000 a policy year. Dependent accommodation pays up to ₹1,000 a day, for up to 10 days.
These four are available only in Plan B. Nursing at home needs an accepted inpatient claim, and dependent accommodation needs a doctor to certify at least 3 consecutive days of hospitalisation.
Plan A covers 90 days before and 180 days after the hospital stay, and adds hospital cover for a surrogate mother and an oocyte donor, each up to ₹5 lakh. Plan B covers 60 days before and 90 days after, but adds home care treatment up to ₹5 lakh, and lets you add health check-up, nursing at home, compassionate visit and dependent accommodation. The sum insured and deductible options are the same in both.
No. Activate Booster has no reset or restore benefit. Once the sum insured is used up in a policy year, it is not refilled for later claims that year. Inflation Protector, an optional cover, raises the sum insured at renewal, but that is a yearly increase, not a refill.
Yes, after a 36-month wait for conditions you declare and ICICI Lombard accepts. The waiting period reduction option can shorten it to 24 or 12 months, and Jumpstart brings it to 30 days for asthma, diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, obesity and coronary artery disease with angioplasty done at least a year earlier. Declare every condition when you buy the policy.
No. Childbirth, caesarean delivery, miscarriage unless an accident caused it, and lawful termination of pregnancy are excluded, and this plan has no maternity add-on. Ectopic pregnancy is the one exception named. If maternity matters, pick a base policy that offers it as an option, such as Elevate, and use Activate Booster for large hospital bills only.
Room rent is covered up to a single private air-conditioned room. If you take a costlier room, associated expenses such as nursing, operation theatre and doctor fees are paid pro rata, though ICU charges are not cut. The Room Modifier option lets you move to any room category, a twin-sharing room, or a cap of 1% of the sum insured per day for a normal room and 2% for ICU.
An individual can be covered from 6 years of age, and entry is allowed up to 125 years. Children from 91 days to 5 years can be covered only on a family floater, and dependent children on a floater are covered up to 30 years. A floater needs at least one adult. The policy renews for life, and the tenure can be one, two or three years.
ICICI Lombard does not publish a starting price. Its prospectus gives a sample at standard rates, before any loading and excluding taxes, for ₹10 lakh cover with a ₹3 lakh deductible: ₹5,113 a year at age 44 and ₹6,515 at age 48. Your premium depends on your age (the eldest member on a floater), the sum insured and deductible, your zone, the tenure and any optional covers. Zone B gets a 10% discount and Zone C 15% against Zone A, while Zone D carries a 12.5% loading. Get a quote for your own details.
Not if you are below 45 and the annual sum insured is up to ₹10 lakh. From age 45 you must take medical tests at ICICI Lombard's designated centres, and the insurer reimburses at least 50% of the cost if it accepts your proposal. The prospectus states the no-test rule only for sums insured up to ₹10 lakh. ICICI Lombard can also load the premium based on your declared health, by up to 200% of the base premium.