As many South Africans are taking note of their spending habits and looking for the best ways to save money. We understand you may want to cut back on a few things, but one thing you should never cut back on is quality insurance. Cheaper insurance options could save you some cash in the short-term, but will usually end up costing more in the long run, especially if you aren’t properly covered. You can still get affordable cover without compromising on quality. Here are some savings tips to ensure you enjoy affordable car insurance, house insurance and building insurance. Get the best car insurance premiums
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Check in regularly on your insurance cover It’s very important to do a regular run-through of your lifestyle, profile and assets as these are the factors that determine how much you are charged every month. Things change all the time – for example, you may have installed extra security measures around your home and not told us, changed jobs, gotten married or had a child move to university. Simply by updating your profile, you may find that your premium decreases or that your risk profile has changed. Remember that a car depreciates in value every year. Ensure that the insured amount reflects the reasonable market value of your vehicle as you will only be paid the insured amount or reasonable market value (whichever is the lesser of the two). To review your current policy or get a comparative quote contact Marizka from our Short-term department, Tel: 011 658-1333, email service@daberistic.com Source: Santam
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The economic downturn over the past year, coupled with the need to reduce expenses, has seen a rise in vacant properties across South Africa and an increase in co-habiting. Taking the decision to move in with a housemate or your partner is a big step. It’s wise to consider the emotional, financial and insurance implications and have critical conversations upfront.
Marius Steyn, Personal Lines Underwriting Manager at Santam, and Marius Neethling, Manager Personal Lines Underwriting (Systems and Administration) at Santam, caution that there are a few considerations people need to think about when merging households. “In the scenario where you move in with your partner, an insurer usually considers you the equivalent of a common-law husband and wife, depending on the seriousness of your relationship. That means you can take out a policy together. If you are moving in with a housemate, both parties will need their own separate insurance policies. In this case, you will have to insure your own belongings and communal living underwriting rules will apply. In both cases there are lots of logistics to tick off – like making sure the household contents are covered.” Here, Steyn and Neethling chat through the checklist to tick off before co-habiting: Make sure you’ve adequately covered the combined contents of your home: Moving in together often results in a staggering amount of ‘stuff.’ Which means you and your partner or housemate will probably need to update the household contents insured amount. If your relationship is seen as serious (insurers look for things like how long you’ve been together, if you’ve co-purchased furniture, etc.), then an insurer will treat you the same as they would a married couple. This means you can take out a policy between you, with one person being the main policyholder and the other, the additional insured. Some considerations:
If you happen to have a fight and temporarily move out… It’s not commonly known, but, if you happen to argue and temporarily move out and take some of your household contents with you, these items will still be covered in your temporary abode, providing this is a private building – not a tent or caravan, for example. This only applies to a temporary situation though – if it’s a permanent split, then you’ll need your own new policy. Vehicle insurance is also important: Remember to add your partner as a regular driver on your policy if he or she uses your vehicle more frequently than you do. If it really doesn’t work out: If, sadly, the relationship comes to an end, then you should get your own policy as soon as possible, especially if you have one policy between you, but you’re not the main policyholder. Remember, if you’re the additional insured, it’s up to the policyholder to pay you in the event of a claim, which could get difficult if you’re not together anymore. If you would like to get a free quote comparison please contact Marizka in our Short-term department email: service@daberistic.com, tel: (011)658-1333 Source: Personal Finance Discovery Insure is celebrating 10 years of bringing clients the very best in innovative and rewarding car and home insurance. Now Discovery Insure is bringing more rich enhancements to clients, while continuing to reward clients for driving less and driving well. These enhancements include benefits to protect the whole family, such as updates to our car seat benefit, a unique safety feature, new tools for driving safely, and more. 1. Keeping our children safe on the road with enhanced car seat discounts. Having the correct car seat can significantly reduce your child's risk of injury or fatality if you are involved in a vehicle accident. Discovery has DOUBLED the discounts on car seats from partners: Toys R Us and Born Fabulous. Vitality Drive clients can get up to 50% off car seats, based on their Vitality Drive status. In addition, you will also have access to a wider range of car seats, making child safety on the roads much more accessible. There is also an extension on the benefit to give clients the opportunity to replace a damaged car seat in the event of a motor vehicle accident at no additional cost The increased discount is available from June 2021 onwards. The car seat replacement benefit will be available in 2021, quarter 3. Read more about the car seat benefit and how to redeem your voucher. 2. The Discovery Insure Driving Academy Being at the forefront of innovation and technology, the Discovery Driving Academy places the driver in an artificial environment which is designed to mimic an actual driving experience. The simulator itself mimics a real car and includes an accelerator, brake, clutch, gearbox, indicators and windscreen wipers. The Discovery Driving Academy allows drivers to have:
Courses available The Discovery Driving Academy is available to all members of the public. Discovery clients get 25% off the course fees but as a Discovery Insure client, you get a 50% discount. Other courses for other levels of experience will soon be added. The Driving Academy can be found at 1 Discovery Place, and will be available from April 2021. Bookings we will be available on the Discovery website. 3. Additional protection with Motion Alert for the Crowd Search Sensor Vitality Drive clients automatically have access to state-of-the-art safety features. The Crowd Search Sensor now offers an additional layer of protection using new telematics technology. How it works Motion Alert uses the latest telematics technology to identify when your phone is not in the vehicle at the time that the vehicle is moving, thus alerting you to possible theft of your vehicle. 4. New services with Vitality Drive Vitality Drive is Discovery Insure's unique driver behaviour programme that rewards you for driving well. In order to help you manage your driving behaviour even better, Discovery has upgraded the monthly Vitality Drive performance dashboard effective from May 2021. What's new on your Dashboard? You will be able to view:
At the Drive Centres, you can:
Keep an eye out for your new personalised Dashboardand visit www.discovery.co.za to find the location of the Discovery Drive Centre closest to you. 5. Upgrade to the latest Apple or Samsung cellphone every year With our Purple Plan, you can upgrade to the latest Apple or Samsung cellphone every year! We are excited to announce that we have a brand new partnership with Cellucity in addition to our partnership with iStore. To qualify for the cellphone upgrade, you must have:
If you qualify, email the Discovery Insure Partners team at dipartners@discovery.co.za and Discovery Insure will provide you with a voucher of R10 000 which you can use at any iStore or Cellucity. You will need to pay any amounts that are more than the R10 000. If you choose to trade in your existing cellphone, it will contribute towards the cost of the new cellphone. We are excited to give you this update and we are sure that you will get great value from it. Get more information about Discovery Insure's Purple Plan cellphone upgrade benefit. 6. Keeping your personal information safe As a valued client we would like to make sure you experience the best service, stay informed and have access to all the information pertaining to your insurance plan. This is why we are gradually changing the way we communicate with you in accordance with the POPI Act. Going forward, all communication that contains personal information will be accessed via a secure log in on the website or on the app. Follow this guide on your personal information to make sure you have updated your contact details and security settings on the website and mobile app. Source: Discovery Insure
Smartphones nowadays are a supercomputer in a small form factor. Premium smartphones can cost a lot of money. iPhone 12 Pro Max and Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2 can easily cost more than R30,000. It is important to insure these expensive items. I have been waiting patiently for the arrival of iPhone 12 in South Africa (alas, we are always last in line in the world). Finally, it arrived on 18 December, and I upgraded from iPhone 6s Plus to a iPhone 12 128GB, which cost R19,999. I contacted a couple of insurers to get a quote to insure my new phone. Company D quoted R350 per month premium with an excess of R750. Company O quoted R255.60 per month premium, with an excess of R1,660. Both for all risks, which means if my phone is accidentally damaged, stolen, screen is cracked, mechanical failure, it's covered. It is important to note that, if you leave your phone in your car, it must be concealed, hidden, e.g. in a glove compartment, centre console, or car boot, with your car locked. Too often we just leave the phone lying around in the car. If our car is broken into and our phone stolen, the insurer will reject the claim. Based on my back-of-envelope calculation, below will be the reasonable price range to insure your smartphone at various price points:
Remember to backup your apps, data and settings in iCloud for iPhones and Google Drive for Android phones, irrespective of whether you insure your phone or not. Backing up your apps and data will make restoring your phone much easier when you upgrade your phone or get a new phone. Your precious data and photos are not something insurance can buy or backup.
Need to insure your expensive smartphone? Contact Marizka in our Short-term Insurance Department to get quotes and advice, on 011-658-1333, or service@daberistic.com. Author: Marizka Esterhuizen, Insurance Broker The main function of insurance is to put the insured into the same position as they were before a loss or accident. Santam states on their website that: “The retail value of a car (which is usually the higher value of the two) is the average price a car dealer would sell it for. In insurance terms, this means that if your car is covered for its retail value and it is written off in an accident or stolen without being recovered, the settlement amount will be based on the car’s retail value. If your car is insured for its retail value, it will be much easier to replace a damaged or stolen car with a similar make and model. The market value of a car is almost always lower than the retail value and takes into account a number of variables, including mileage, vehicle condition, service history and accident reports. If you were to sell your car privately, the market value would be the price that you could likely sell it for. Because this figure can vary from car to car, short-term insurers need to find a way to standardise the market value. The reasonable market value uses the retail value as the base and takes into account the amount of kilometres on your car’s odometer, the condition of the car as well as any extra items added to the car.” Therefore, if you insure your vehicle at market value you will not be able to replace the vehicle with a similar vehicle, leaving you in a worse position than before the loss or accident. You can use the calculator on Santam’s website to calculate the retail value of your vehicle by using the Auto Dealer Code, or your vehicles exact specifications, e.g. year, make, module etc. The Auto Dealer code was developed by TransUnion to specify vehicles. TransUnion has been gathering data over five decades and updates their data monthly to ensure that they provide accurate information in their guides. These guides are used by insurance, financing, and motor trader companies. “Can you please also explain why the Honda Jazz is insured for a less value, but the monthly insurance is higher than the Jeep Compass?”Insurance companies uses various factor that impact the rate at which the insurance premiums are calculated. These factors include, but are not limited to, the regular driver, vehicle specifications and the claims history.
Insurance premium rates are calculated by actuaries every year using data collected over the previous years. With today’s technologies and the vast well of data available, insurance companies have moved over to a client specific risk-based approach. Meaning that insurance rates are calculated per individual with vehicle insurance, insurance companies look at the regular driver, taking into account the following factors: • Age • Marital status • Gender • Occupation The vehicles specifications also play a role in calculation the rate. For example, older vehicles have been on the road longer and are therefore more prone to breakdowns, the parts are harder to find and therefore more expensive even if their retail value is lower than other vehicles. Hijacking statistics are also used, as a result vehicle like VW Polo’s that are more likely to be hijacked, have higher insurance rates. Insurance companies look at the following factors: • Year the vehicle was manufactured • Vehicle module • Vehicle make • The colour of the vehicle • Extras on the vehicle • Vehicle security • Where the vehicle is parked in the day and at night The claims history of the driver is used in calculating the rate for the premium, a higher loss ratio will result in a higher premium. • Your loss ratio, which is the losses an insurer incurs due to paid claims as a percentage of premiums earned. • Your loss ratio is calculated by dividing the claim amount by the annual premium. In conclusion, there are various factors that can result in the premium for the Honda Jazz being higher than the Jeep. To get help and advice on your car insurance, please contact 011-658-1333, Option 3, email service@daberistic.com to speak to one of our insurance brokers. Client's question: By adding a specific item to be insured, e.g. a R60K projector, does it mean a higher insurance premium? VS insured as a general contents lump sum? Answer: Electronic equipment ALWAYS have to be insured on a specified basis under the Electronic Equipment section. This section has extension suitable for data processing equipment. For items like Projector and Microphone, they can either be insured under Electronic Equipment or All Risk, but All Risk can be recommended as these items do not require the extensions offered under the Electronic Equipment. Secondly, Santam now offers various options under the All Risk section (e.g. Portable items that only stay on the premise), which attracts a lower rate. (These are the options we also discussed in our meeting) General contents under the Fire section is just for everything else such as furniture, fittings, stock etc. Additional fitting such as Aircon, Signage, Generators should be specified under the Fire section. If you would like to get a quote to cover your Equipment, please contact Edmond or Marizka in our Short-Term department, email shortterm@daberistic.com, tel (011)658-1333 Source: Santam In South Africa, having a car is a necessity which at the same time brings the risk of a motor accident. And let’s face it – motor accident is the last thing on our mind, hence when we encounter it, we often do not know what to do. The purpose of this article is to share some info on the topic, so that you are better prepared in the event of a motor accident. First and foremost, it is imperative that you remain calm and put safety first. Many people often get out of the car immediately in order to check for damages (or in some cases, argue with the other party), without first checking surroundings. This is very dangerous, particularly on a highway or major roads, hence this must be remembered. If you feel unwell after the incident, limit your movement and wait for paramedics to arrive on the scene. Secondly, you should not admit any liability. This is an accident which no one wanted to happen, so leave the liability matter to the insurer who will represent you in the case. Furthermore, record as much evidence as possible. Fortunately, these days we all have a cell phone, so you can take pictures and record key information such as:
So what should you call the police? If there are no injuries or major blockage of the road, then you don’t have to call the police – you can register the case at the nearest police station within 24 hours. If there are injuries, then the cars can only be moved after police arrives on the scene and takes proper record. In terms of towing, if the car remains drivable, then no towing service is needed. However, if you are worried that driving it may cause further damage (or the car is not drivable at all), then we suggest that you contact your insurer to arrange towing and storage by their appointed service provider to avoid any potential issues. If needed, the police has the right to tow the car for further investigation. Last but not least, remember to inform your insurance advisor after the incident and provide true and accurate information, so that the claim can be processed without delay. If you have any short-term insurance needs, you can contact us on the following channels:
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AuthorKevin Yeh Archives
January 2025
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