If you own a car, then a good insurance policy is crucial, even if you’re the world’s best driver who only parks in secure locations. The fact remains, if you don’t have a protective car insurance policy, then you face devastating financial risk every time you drive. In spite of this truth, a lot of drivers in South Africa avoid getting insurance. Mostly, this is down to the cost and a lack of understanding of the policies available.
We’re going to tackle these 2 issues and explain 3 reasons why you absolutely can’t live without car insurance if you’re driving a car on our roads.
1. The financial cushioning
In South Africa, we tend to have 3 types of car insurance. The all-inclusive comprehensive cover, the mid-weight third party, fire and theft cover, and the basic third party only.
The 3 types of car insurance explained:
- Comprehensive: Covers the whole shebang, including damage to your own car after an accident, damage to others, theft of your car, hi-jackings, and more.
- Third party, fire and theft: Covers damage to others after an accident, fire damage to your car, and theft.
- Third party only: Covers damage to others after an incident only.
You only need comprehensive cover (which is the most expensive option) if your car is financed, new or new-ish, and would cost a lot to repair or replace. If you’re driving something much older and paid off, then the other 2 options are worth exploring.
Whichever policy you choose, you’ll be paying a monthly premium for your insurer to cushion the financial blow after an incident. Think about a car accident involving you backing out of your gate, your reversing neighbour, and their driveway intercom. With comprehensive cover, your insurer will pay to fix your car, your neighbour’s car, and the damage to both driveways. This could come to hundreds of thousands of Rands (depending on how fast you swung into your neighbour).
Without insurance, you’ll be financially devastated and possibly face legal charges.
2. The assist benefits
Another reason to consider car insurance is that many insurers include assist benefits with their offering to help you out of a tough spot that would otherwise cost you a heap of money.
Some of these benefits include:
- Roadside assistance: Multiple services to help you out, including towing services, breakdown assistance, a delivery of fuel if you’ve run dry, and much more.
- Home assistance: Cover for the services of an approved locksmith, electrician, and plumber for 1 hour + the call-out fee.
- Medical assistance: Cover for emergency medical transport under a range of circumstances that could cost you quite a bit and not be covered by your medical aid (if you have any).
3. You won’t be alone
Without car insurance, you’re left to figure out the aftermath of an incident all on your own. Theft, hi-jackings, and accidents don’t come with a manual. You’ll have to work out what to say, what not to say, when to talk to the police, etc. all on your own. And that can be unnerving or even downright frightening.
What you want, is to get cover from an insurer with an excellent reputation for their customer experience. You want a company that delivers excellent service, like King Price, who pride themselves on their royal service and make sure that you aren’t left to fend for yourself after an incident.
At the end of the day, it’s better to know who has your back and wants to help you get cover at the most affordable price. If you’re interested in finding out how much you could pay for car insurance, then click here to get a commitment-free quote.