Car insurance is the biggest line of business in the Kenyan insurance industry. It is a requirement for all cars on the road to have a minimum of third party can insurance as mandated by the Kenya Cap 405. The combination of private and commercial car insurance premiums totalled to KSh 45 billions accounting for 36% of the total general insurance premiums for the year ending 2017. The market has over 30 general insurance companies offering most of the different types of car insurance. Therefore when planning to buy a car insurance cover, it is important for the customer to understand what’s available and at what price. In this article we discuss the different classes of motor insurance available and average costs of each.
Private Vehicles
This is the largest group of vehicles in Kenya and account for the biggest share of insurance premiums too. These are commonly saloon, sedans and SUV vehicles used for personal and family errands. For these types of vehicles, insurers in the market are coming up with new products which use telematics to price the insurance based on factors like driving habits, amount of time on the road, mechanical condition of the car and more. Heritage insurance has recently launched its telematics based insurance called Auto Correct insurance which promises to reward good driving customers with up to 15% cash back of their annual car insurance premiums.
Comprehensive Insurance
For most car owners, this is the cover of choice when it comes to insuring their vehicles. These covers against loss and damage from accident, fire, floods and natural calamities.
The cost of comprehensive insurance starts from about 3.2% for basic insurance subject to minimum premium of KSh 15,000 depending on the insurer. There is a limit to the age of the vehicle, most insurers don’t take on vehicles more than 12 years old or less than KSh 300,000 in market value.
Two common add-ons on the private car insurance are the Excess Protector for Own Damage and the Political Violence and Terrorism cover. These are charged at a rate of 0.25% of the vehicle value subject to a minimum premium of KSh 2,000.
Third Party Fire & Theft
This is a mix of the comprehensive and third party only motor insurance classes. As the name suggests (third party fire and theft), it only covers third party liability for property and bodily injuries and fire and theft of the insured motor vehicle. That means that in case of a road accident, the insured client has to foot the cost of the repairs to the insured car. The price for this starts from 2.5% of the value of the car. This means that for a car of market value 1 million, the annual premium would amount to KSh 25,000. From this pricing, it is clear why this class of motor insurance is not popular in the market, the cost is on the higher side while the coverage is not much to write about. This is the reason why most customers in the market go for either comprehensive cover or third party only.
Third Party Only Cover
The Third Party car insurance is the most popular car insurance cover on the road. It also the most affordable on the market ranging from KSh 5,063 – 7,574 per annum. It is important to note that does not cover damage or loss of the insured vehicle. It only covers the insured against third party liabilities for property damage or bodily injuries. The total aggregate annual limit is KSh 20 millions with the limit for any one event capped to KSh 3-4 million.
Public Service Vehicles (PSV)
These are another popular class of vehicles on the road. They comprise of the online ride hailing apps like UBER, BOLT and Little. These are classed as PSV chauffeur driven vehicles. They have revolutionised the taxi industry by reducing costs and bringing convenience.
Another category under PSVs is the self drive vehicles. This is commonly referred to as leasing/car hire. Members of the public can hire a car for a given duration to use to run their own errands.
Last nut not least is the Matatu PSV common in urban centres like Nairobi, Kisumu, Mombasa etc. This has its own class of insurance offered by Directline and Invesco Assurance.
Comprehensive Cover
This is the most common cover taken for this class of insurance. Some of the online taxi hailing apps require the cover to be full comprehensive.
The insurance rate starts from 5% of the vehicle value minimum of 25,000. This is one of the most expensive covers due to the nature of the high risk market. Many insurance companies offering this cover charged upwards of 6% and don’t and completely exclude the excess protector option on this class of vehicles.
Third Party Only Insurance
While this is still not common, many partners and drivers on the online hailing apps are still opting for it. This is a package that contains third party liabilities covering and also the passenger legal liability for paying passengers. Because it does not cover the vehicle against accidental damages and theft, people operating in this business stand to incur heavy expenses if the vehicle is involved in an accident.
Prices start from KSh 9,583 inclusive of PLL for 4 paying passengers.
Commercial Vehicles Insurance
This is the second biggest group of vehicles on the road. These include lorries, trucks, pick-ups, canters and more. Furthermore, they are divided into 2 classes
Own Goods and General Cartage. For the own goods, these are vehicles owned by an individual or entity used to carry their own goods/merchandise. General cartage, the vehicles are owned by entity and used to transport goods for customers/third parties for reward/hire. An example of this is transporter companies.
Comprehensive insurance for Own Goods carriage vehicles starts from 4.5% of the value of the vehicle for a basic car insurance. Excess protector for own damage and PVT are charged at 0.25% each subject to a minimum premium of KSh 3,000.
For general cartage, the corresponding insurance are a bit higher because of the nature of the business. The prices start from 5% of the vehicle value for the basic car insurance. Other add-ons are charged at 0.25% with a minimum premium of KSh 5,000 each (Excess protector for own damage and political violence and terrorism).
In addition, for the commercial motor insurance covers 2 add-ons are
- Personal accident cover for the driver and turn boy.
- Courtesy car (or loss of income while the vehicle is under repairs)
GET a QUOTE
IF you are looking for a quote for car insurance for private, PSV and commercial vehicles, compare the benefits, insurers and prices available on the market. Compare all the packages by getting 10 quotes online here https://www.pesabazaar.com/insurance/motor-insurance/comprehensive