Friends living in Australia must have a lot of feelings about the "strange" weather. A great hailstorm in Sydney on February 18 this year put Sydney in extremely bad weather. The hail was not small and destructive; the sudden hail caused serious losses to many people. especially many people's cars were mottled by hail. But, most of the affected people have insurance, but insurance companies are crying.
Insurance companies Suncorp said they had received 11,000 claims related to the hail. Australian Insurance Group IAG has also received 20,000 claims for more than A $300 million. But insurance is to guarantee everyone's property in such cases, which is one of the reasons why we buy insurance. Today, we'll talk about Australian auto insurance.
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Common types of automobile insurance
Full risk (Comprehensive cover): the full risk includes the loss (personnel and vehicles) of oneself and the other party in the accident. Even if the other party is not insured, his insurance company will be responsible for repairing the cars of both parties and providing full protection for the vehicles. Even during the repair period ,(some) insurance companies will also provide rental fees, towing fees and so on. It is a more carefree insurance. All risks usually include insurance payments for collision, accidental damage, bad weather, fire theft and damage, third party property, etc. In addition, full insurance often has a wider range of optional services.
Third party insurance (Third party cover): it is much cheaper than full insurance. If you are the main party to the accident, the insurance company will only pay for the loss of the other party's vehicle or property, and the cost of repairing your own car will be borne by yourself. Some companies provide additional options on this basis, such as paying an extra fee, with a certain amount of limited theft or fire compensation.
Mandatory third party insurance (Compulsory Third Party (CTP) Insurance): also known as green slip". Every owner registered in Australia requires compulsory purchase of CTP, to register the vehicle to the local road bureau. are mainly responsible for the medical expenses and personal injury compensation for the death and injury of third party personnel in the car accident accident (the insufficient part is responsible for the owner), including himself, passengers, other car owners and pedestrians on the road. Property losses and car losses are not covered by insurance. Different states also have different CTP procedures and registration methods.
Besides standard auto insurance, insurance companies often have additional insurance options (Additional coverage options) such as new car replacement services, road assistance, etc.
What is the difference between agreed value (Agreed Value) and market value (Market Value)?
Most insurance companies will let you choose the value of the car that the insurance company pays when your car is scrapped. Market value refers to the market value of the car at the time of claim, in which the reference factors include the age of the car, the brand model and so on. The agreed value is the value of the car at the time of purchase of auto insurance, the indemnity agreed between you and the insurance company; the value can not be changed before the renewal of the insurance agreement. Generally speaking, if the cost of repairing the car is more than 60% of the value of your car, the insurance company will compensate you for the whole car.
What is Excess Fee or Claim Fee?
Excess Fee or Claim Fee can be called self-payment or insurance fee, refers to the insurance you need to pay. Your Excess is $500, for example, your insurance claim is $1500, you will pay the insurance company 500 first, and the remaining $1000 will be borne by the insurance company. If a more serious accident occurs, such as a vehicle being reimbursed, the Excess usually does not have to pay, but will be deducted from the final claim.
Generally speaking, the Excess consists of three parts:
- Basic expenses Basic excess: this is the minimum amount you must pay in the event of a claim, which will be stated on the insurance certificate.
- Voluntary costs Voluntary excess: This is the additional cost you agree to pay on the basic costs at the time of the claim. higher the Voluntary excess, the lower the total insurance cost. The total cost of insurance for a year may be $2600 if the basic cost $400, the voluntary cost $200, and the total excess is $600. If you raise voluntary costs to 400, your total premium may fall to 2500. Because your increased voluntary costs effectively reduce the financial risk of insurance companies, premiums are usually reduced. Here the owner needs to choose, is to give up the risk more expensive, the premium is cheaper, or the opposite.
- The age charge (inexperienced owner) Age excess: if the owner is inexperienced (usually driving age), or younger than 25 years old, the excess is usually higher. May overpay $about 450 excess.
As a result, in the event of an accident, the difference between the cost of compensation and the excess paid by oneself is usually considered. If the cost of repairing the car is similar to the cost of excess, people usually choose not to go the way of insurance claims. Because after applying for a claim, the insurance company thinks that your risk of claim is increased and will increase the premium when the insurance is renewed.
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How is the annual premium calculated?
Each insurance company has its own insurance premium calculation method, but usually the following factors will be considered but not limited to:
- Type of insurance, additional services and premium
- Motor vehicle day and night storage location
- Owner's age, driving, driving and insurance records
- Type of insured vehicle (manufacturer, model, year)
- Expected use of vehicles (e.g. private or commercial)
- Vehicle modifications
- Vehicle safety devices
- Agreed value or market value of vehicles
How to reduce the premium? Car owners have a lot of options to reduce premiums, which is to choose the direction that is conducive to vehicle safety. Let the insurance company think that your safety factor is high and the risk is low. For example: safe parking of vehicles, maintenance of good driving records, purchase of vehicles equipped with safety and security devices, selection of vehicle market value, etc.
If you have a good grasp of the driving technology, by their own fault caused by the accident is unlikely, you can consider raising the risk fee to reduce the premium. But different car owners may be very different, so must make a choice according to their own conditions, do not blindly follow or too confident.
In addition, you may also be able to apply for additional discounts when buying auto insurance. For example, you have other insurance in this insurance company, you have been using this insurance for many years, or you have rarely or never applied for compensation from the insurance company, which may reduce the premium.
Insurance companies
The following are common insurance companies in Australia (including but not limited to):
Insurance Australia Group Limited
Brand: RACV、NRMA、CGU、RACQ etc
Suncorp Group Limited
Brand: AAMI、GIO、Just Car Insurance、Vero Insurance、Bingle etc
QBE Insurance Group Limited
Brand: QBE、Elders Insurance etc
Allianz Australia Limited
Brand: Alianz、CIC Allianz、TIO etc
Additional Tips
- Car insurance can be basically completed on the Internet, in a car insurance brand website after filling out the information, you can get the quotation (Quote), you can compare several insurance quotes to see which is the most affordable.
- Insurance companies can now defer payment, after the submission of information insurance can be at their own time or immediately effective. Then pay the full amount in the next month. In this month, even if you haven't paid, the insurance company will pay for the accident.
- Insurance had better start from the first day of the use of the car, had better not have a fluke mentality said to drive two weeks before processing. Just bought a car novice, the first few months is the accident-prone period.
- Auto insurance can be frozen or cancelled in the middle. If you return to China for two or three months, the temporary cancellation of auto insurance can also save a sum of money.
Summary
So, which kind of insurance is better? Generally speaking, new cars, high value cars and new drivers suggest buying all risks. Low car value can buy third party insurance as appropriate. But in addition, the key depends on the quality of service of insurance companies. For example, can you choose your own garage? How long does the claim process take (as short as a week and as long as months)? Whether to provide proxy, etc.
Because after the accident, the owner must be worried and anxious, if another troublesome insurance company, it can be said to be worse. So when we buy insurance, we should consider all aspects, according to specific needs to choose the most suitable for their own. Generally speaking, large well-known companies, although the premium is relatively expensive, but the claim process is convenient and easy, good service attitude. Small companies or low-cost insurers may claim longer limits and time-consuming. Insurance has its own advantages and disadvantages, the most suitable for their own is the best.
