Having car insurance is important for the future good. Through car insurance coverage, a car owner will not feel overburdened if something happens to themselves or the car, later. At least the cost will be covered by the insurance company which indirectly lessens the burden of the owner.
Roadtax is compulsory - The Road Transport Department (JPJ) requires all vehicle owners to have a valid MVL which is also called as roadtax in order for vehicles to be used on the road.
Insurance is required to renew roadtax - A vehicle owner must renew the insurance and roadtax before it reaches its expiry date.
Vehicle owners are encouraged to renew motor and car insurance & roadtax within 2 months before the expiry date.
Comprehensive car insurance is also known as first party insurance. It provides the most comprehensive protection. You will be covered for accidents, fire and theft. The insurer will also cover (pay the cost) if an accident happened to your car and the party you hit. This policy is suitable for car below 10 years old.
This car insurance type provides coverage to your own vehicle if your car gets caught in fire, or gets stolen. If an accident happened (and you’re at fault), you will need to repair the car with your own money while the car you hit will be covered by your car insurance company.
This is the most basic type of car insurance. It only covers the third party involved in the car accident. No protection will be provided in the event of an accident (alone), theft or fire. Third party car insurance is subject to insurance companies’ approval.
Sum insured is the maximum amount a car can be insured according to the current market value. Click here for your reference.
The sum insured of car insurance can be determined by two different values:
Agreed value - Agreed value is the amount which has been agreed both by the car owner and insurance provider based on the car’s model and year.
Example: If the amount insured is RM35,000 and an accident occured, the car insurance company will give full compensation of RM35,000.
Market value - To put it in the simplest words, market value is defined as how much your car is worth before the damage occurs.
Example: If the amount insured for the car was RM35,000 but the market value for the car during the accident drops to RM30,000, the car insurance company will pay compensation depending on the market value of RM30,000.
Below is a list of additional coverage commonly offered by most car insurance and Takaful companies. However, the terms and conditions of each car insurance and Takaful company may differ from each other:
NCD is the discount given to you if no claim has been made under your policy with the current insurance company during the year. The rate of your NCDs will increase if there is no claim made by you in the following year.
Rates for cars vary as below:
NCDs rate for car:
However, if you have earned 55% NCD and eventually you made a claim during that year, your NCD rate will be back to 0% the following year.
Each car insurance company offers a similar policy but with different benefits or advantages. Here are some of the highlights of the car insurance package offered.
*Note: Please refer to insurance companies’ product disclosure sheet and your insurance policy when there is a difference.
Before July 2017, the premium rates for car insurance in Malaysia were pretty much the same (based on the value of your vehicle and its engine capacity) across all car insurance providers. This was because the premium rates were tariffed by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM). Car insurance companies based their premium calculation mainly on the technical details and age, therefore the market value of your car.
However, since the implementation of de-tariffication in July 2017, car insurance companies now look into various additional other factors to determine your car insurance premium. Among the factors that will be taken into account in determining the premium price of car insurance are as follows:
1. Call your car insurance company hotline if you involved in a serious accident
2. Gather all the evidence and record important information such as time and place of the accident, photos of the accident, photos that include damage of your vehicle and other vehicle involved and exchange information with the vehicle involved
3. Make a police report within 24 hours
4. Report to the car insurance company within 7 days of the accident
5. Make sure your car is sent to the panel workshop of the car insurance company
6. Fill in the car insurance company's claim form
7. Submit all forms required by the car insurance company
8. Check with your car insurance company about the repairs done by the panel workshop
9. Sign the car insurance company release form when you are satisfied with your car after the repair
Basically, the car insurance company will charge an excess amount for claim if your car is involved in an accident caused by another driver. However, you can make a car insurance claim if you have added-on the driver name in the policy or you have purchased a car insurance policy with all drivers coverage when renewing your car insurance.
Yes, you can cancel your car insurance policy at any time. However, penalties may be imposed if you cancel the policy before the expiration date.
The package offered by the car insurance companies can be lesser because of the age of your car. However, the car insurance packages offered at BJAK.my cover a wide range of cars and hence you’ll still be able to renew your car insurance at BJAK.my.
The main difference is that comprehensive car insurance covers the damage of your car during collision (road accident), fire and theft but third party, fire and theft car insurance covers the damage of your car during fire and theft only. There is no towing service if you purchase a third party, fire and theft car insurance.
Some of the car insurance companies will offer to auto-renew your car insurance. Please refrain from auto-renewal because the car insurance premium that you are going to pay may not be the lowest in the market. Car insurance companies update the car insurance premium from time to time and hence it’s advised to compare the car insurance price from various car insurance companies before renewal.
Some of the car insurance companies charge higher when your car insurance has expired. Therefore, it is important to renew your car insurance earlier than expiry date to stay protected and to enjoy the lowest price.
Car insurance companies have different car insurance premium calculation methods.The car insurance premiums between the car insurance companies can vary as big as 40-50% depending on the car condition.
Hence, to buy car insurance at the lowest price, car owners should compare the car insurance quotations from multiple companies first. Usually car owners can save up to hundreds after comparison.
Every car may have different usage and purpose and hence it is crucial to purchase the car insurance package that’s most suitable for your car. Some of the quotations provided may include car insurance coverage that’s not applicable for the use case, or have a sum insured that’s higher than the actual market value. Therefore, car owners are advised to check the coverage of the car insurance to make sure that they are paying only for what is needed.
BJAK.my is a one stop car insurance comparison and renewal platform in Malaysia. BJAK.my helps car owners to find the lowest price for their car insurance by achieving all the above mentioned steps.
Many car owners have renewed their car insurance in BJAK.my and provide good feedback on social media. You can read BJAK.my review here. Let’s request a car insurance quotation from BJAK.my today.