Comprehensive Car Insurance in Kenya

What are the most recommended optional benefits?

On top of the basic cover that your comprehensive car insurance will cover in Kenya, there are several optional benefits that can be added to your policy to further secure your policy. To get you a cheaper car insurance rates in Kenya, some insurance companies may bundle these options and sell it bundled.

Excess Protector

The excess protector is the single most important optional add-on that most car owners add to their policy in Kenya. It cushions the insured against a high insurance excess/deductible payable in case of a claim. There are two types of excess protector, excess protector for own damage and Full Excess Protector. As the naming suggests, the excess protector for own damage only covers claims arising from damage or partial loss to the insured vehicle. Partial loss on this means small thefts and or vandalisms e.g. theft of side mirrors, wheel caps etc. The full excess protector will cover own damage and also cover total loss of the vehicle from theft. In the event of a claim, the insured is normally required to pay an excess of between 2.5% - 25% for the cases of successful theft of the vehicle of the insured value of the car which can be a huge amount of money and cause financial burden at a time of distress. For example, for a car worth KSh 1 million, paying an excess of up to KSh 250,000 can leave an insurance customer well and truly dissatisfied. However, thanks to the excess protector, the insured will not have to pay this as the insurer takes over the entire cost. The excess protector costs 0.25% of the value of the insured car for own damage. For the full excess protector, this goes for 1-2% of the insured vehicle value although some insurers may hesitate to give this option given to the high numbers of dubious and suspicious vehicle theft claims.

Tip: In the event of a motor insurance claim where the excess protector is utilised, it is considered depleted meaning the insured has to purchase this excess protector option once again immediately after the claim for it to be reinstated on their car insurance policy.

Political Violence and Terrorism Cover

Most Kenyans are not aware that Political violence and terrorism is not covered on all general insurance policies, it is an extensions that can either be added to most of the common general insurance policies or taken as a standalone. It is therefore advisable to take this option to protect your treasured asset from any politically motivated damage. A common occurrence of these is strikes, protests and riots, which arise out of political negotiations and lead to destruction of public property, lawlessness and disorder.

The cost of this cover is normally charged at 0.25% of the value of the insured vehicle.

Tip: When buying your car insurance online or through the traditional channels, it is important to compare quotes from multiple insurance providers in Kenya to make sure you are getting the best price for the best cover. Many insurance companies give a good discount when a combo package including an excess protector and a PVT cover are taken together as opposed to when the basic car insurance policy is taken on its own.

Personal Accident Cover

A personal accident cover is one of the most popular insurance covers both for the corporate insurance market and the retail insurance market. It is most commonly taken as an add-on. While the standard car insurance policy may have a small limit for emergency medical expenses, nothing can replace the utility of a personal accident cover. It combines elements of a medical insurance cover and those of a life insurance cover. Take your time and go through your car insurance quotes online so that you can a clear understanding of the scope of cover.

Note: Car insurance does not cover liabilities to family members, therefore in the event of a car accident, any medical expenses or liabilities by members of the family travelling in the accident vehicle are not cover. It is therefore crucial to arm yourself with a personal accident cover.

Courtesy Car

In the event of a car accident or theft of the insured, car owners may suffer the biggest convenience. Without an alternative car to use while the accident vehicle is garaged for a many times unpredictable amount of time, the insured requires a replacement car. Most car insurance companies provide an option of a replacement courtesy car for a maximum of 10 days while the insured motor vehicle is out of use. Because of the logistical challenges of providing an actual car for this, many car insurance companies in Kenya offer re-imbursement of KSh 3,000 for each day that the insured vehicle is out of use up to a total maximum of KSh 30,000

Note: This service has insurance excess, which is the first 3 days that the insured vehicle is garaged; this means the insured will not be paid for those first 3 days.

AA cover

AA cover is one of the useful services for a car owner in Kenya. In the event of an accident or a car breakdown, AA cover will be your saviour. Get your vehicle professionally towed or small repairs done to kick-start your car free of charge courtesy of your AA membership. For the paltry sum of KSh 3,500 a year you can get an AA cover. In addition to AA cover, other companies like INFAMA Kenya also offer towing and recovery options within the main towns and cities.

What’s not covered on a car insurance policy?

Much as a comprehensive car insurance policy should be ‘comprehensive’ in nature, there are a few things that it doesn’t cover. Below are some of the major ones.

Wear, Tear and Depreciation

This goes without saying! Motor vehicle insurance will not cover loss in value of a vehicle due to wear and tear and depreciation of the vehicle. In addition, car insurance does not cover damage to tyres e.g. wear or punctures to the tyres. However, some car insurance companies like APA and Kenya Orient in have developed insurance products that extend cover to car tyres as well.

Third party liabilities outside Kenya

Your car insurance policy will not cover for third party liabilities should you take leave Kenya. Therefore, should your vehicle damage any third party property or cause bodily injuries to members of the public that will not be covered by your comprehensive motor insurance in Kenya.

However, there is a simple and affordable solution to all this, a COMESA yellow card policy was made purposely to extend cover to members of the COMESA – Common Market East and South Africa while travelling out of their home countries. A COMESA yellow card extension can be obtained from your insurance company, it is charged per day of travel outside the home country. As the name says, it is simply a ‘yellow card’

Acts of Negligence

Should it become evident that a car accident or a claim on the insurance policy was a resultant of negligent behaviour, it will not be paid out. Similar to many insurance policies, any insurance claim arising out of use of illegal drugs like class A drugs cocaine, heroine and others will automatically disqualify the indemnity to be extended to the insured. Using may sources of online car insurance rates in Kenya, you will normally be presented with the exclusions that your cover does not extend to.

Use within airports (beyond areas allowed to the public)

This specifically limits the use of vehicles to this. Because airports have special purpose vehicles that are permitted to operate in restricted zones, ordinary car insurance policies cannot cover these areas. Motor vehicles required for this may be of different nature with specialised functionalities.