Is car insurance compulsory in South Africa?

Car insurance is available in just about every country in the world, but it’s not actually mandatory to get cover everywhere. In South Africa, for instance, car insurance is not compulsory. In fact, according to research conducted by the Automobile Association (AA), 70% of cars in South Africa aren’t insured.

This has led to rumours that the government is working on a plan to make third party car insurance mandatory in South Africa.

It’s actually kind of interesting to think about… Because if everyone was required by law to get even the most basic (and cheapest) level of cover, we think it would have a tremendously positive impact on our country.

Here are a couple of thoughts on the concept of compulsory car insurance in South Africa.

Uninsured car problems

Let’s start with the problems caused by most people being uninsured. Consider an accident where you’re responsible and you don’t have cover. Firstly, there’s damage caused to the other person’s property, who won’t be able to claim from your insurance. So, they’re in a worse position than before.

As for you, well, the other person involved in the accident could take you to court and the court may order you to pay a massive amount of money. And that’s on top of the legal fees you might have to cough up.

Basically, you could be financially ruined, while the accident wasn’t much more than a minor fender bender.

3 Reasons why everyone should have at least some cover

Firstly, it makes economic sense. According to the Sowetan even just getting third party car insurance can cost 80% less than comprehensive insurance, while third party, fire and theft insurance can cost 60% less. This pales in comparison to the costs of being responsible for damage due to an accident with another person. Absolutely pales, we tell you.

Secondly, insurance is a ‘good for you, good for them’ deal. The reality is that, as a driver on the less-than-perfect roads in South Africa, you can accidentally cause harm to other people and/or their property. For this reason, you need to have, at the very least, third party insurance to ensure that you can pay for damage after an accident.

Essentially, having cover gives you financial protection if you have an accident.

And lastly, South Africa boasts sky high road accident rates. If we just look at the stats released in the 2019/20 Festive Season Road Safety Report by Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula, the figures are enough to shock anyone into driving like a cautious granny.

Sure, the report revealed that there were marginally fewer fatalities (which is a big yay), but it also highlighted that the cars mostly involved in fatal crashes were light motorcars. The kinds of cars that we tend to drive, which is why car insurance isn’t really optional.

It’s an absolute necessity in order to prepare for the very real possibility of an accident.

So… Why do most people not get cover?

The main reason seems to be a lack of awareness. Lots of people don’t know that there are affordable options out there, or how insurance benefits them (like what it pays for if an incident happens), or they don’t have a grip on how an incident could impact them financially.

Guys, accidents happen. And criminals are out there and they really *really* like stealing cars.

That’s why we’re loud and proud with our royally wacky ads. Yes, we want to make you laugh, but we also want to make you think about what would happen if you didn’t have cover. We want you to know about how our amazing car insurance options can make a huge difference in your life.

Our top-selling policies include:

The king’s comprehensive car insurance: Covers accidental damage to your car (as well as damage that you cause to other people’s cars or property), and theft and hi-jacking.
Theft and write-off: Covers your car if it’s written off or stolen/hi-jacked, never to be seen again.
Third party, fire and theft: Covers fire, theft, hi-jacking, and your liability for other people’s property.
Third party only: Covers your liability for accidental damage to other people’s property.

Don’t be part of the 70% who don’t have cover.

Click here to see our options, get a commitment-free quote and join our kingdom today!