Golden Shield in one table
| Insurer | ICICI LOMBARD General Insurance Company Limited |
|---|---|
| Sum insured | ₹3 lakh to ₹50 lakh. |
| Entry age | 56 years and above, with no maximum entry age. Renewal is lifelong. |
Claim settlement and complaint figures are IRDAI-published and held centrally by NYVO, not taken from the insurer's marketing.
What Golden Shield covers
These are the terms that decide what you are actually paid when you claim. Room rent, co-pay and restoration do more to shape a settlement than the sum insured does, and they are read from ICICI Lombard's own policy wording.
| Feature | This plan | What good looks like |
|---|---|---|
| What kind of plan this is | Indemnity health insurance for older buyers. It reimburses hospital bills up to the sum insured, after the co-payment. | Read the co-payment row next |
| Base co-payment | 50% of every admissible claim. It can be reduced at purchase for additional premium, and changed only at renewal, with fresh waiting periods on the changed portion. | This is the whole story of the plan |
| Entry age | Minimum 56 years, with no maximum entry age. Renewal is lifelong. | Genuinely open where most plans close |
| Room rent | Twin sharing room where the sum insured is below ₹10 lakh. A higher category cuts every associated expense proportionately, not just the room charge. | Check against the hospital you would use |
| Zone loading | Treatment in a higher zone than the one you bought attracts an additional co-payment on top of the base 50%, except for road traffic accidents. | Buy the zone you will actually be treated in |
Golden Shield waiting periods: when each part of the cover starts
Waiting periods run from the day cover began, not from the day you fall ill, and they run in parallel rather than one after another.
| Pre-existing disease | 24 months of continuous cover |
|---|
Golden Shield exclusions: what the plan will not pay for
Every policy carries exclusions, and they are the clauses people read for the first time at claim stage. These are the ones worth knowing before you buy.
Where Golden Shield falls short
No plan is right for everyone, and a page that only lists strengths is not much use to you. These are the gaps we would raise on a call before recommending it.
Golden Shield questions, answered
What is the catch with Golden Shield?
The 50% base co-payment. Half of every admissible claim is yours. It buys you entry at an age when most insurers decline, and it can be reduced for extra premium, but it is the term that decides whether this plan is worth holding.
Who is this plan for?
Someone aged 56 or over who cannot get cover elsewhere. Entry has no upper limit and renewal is lifelong, which is genuinely rare. If you can still qualify for a plan without a 50% co-payment, that will almost always pay you more.
What is the waiting period for pre-existing conditions?
24 months of continuous cover. That is shorter than the 36 months many plans apply, and it is one of the better terms in this policy.
Can the co-payment be reduced?
Yes, for additional premium, and only at purchase or renewal. Fresh waiting periods apply to the changed portion, so reducing it later does not take effect immediately.
Read it from the insurer
We summarise. The policy wording is the contract, and it is the only document that settles a dispute. These links go to the insurer's own pages.
Understand the terms before you commit
A plan page tells you what this policy does. These explain why each term matters and what it costs you when it is missing.
Other ICICI Lombard plans we have read
ICICI Lombard files these separately, and the terms differ between them. If you are choosing within the range, compare the waiting periods and the exclusions rather than the sum insured.