Best Car Insurance in Malaysia

Insurer	Benefits
Allianz Car Insurance	24/7 helpline assistance First response bike brigade Allianz tow truck E-hailing vouchers 10 minutes claims approval Vehicle delivery
Zurich Car Insurance	Up to 10% discount on premium for low-risk drivers Up to 20% discount with voluntary excess Water damage cover as low as RM10 per year Personal accident as low as RM15/year for driver and passengers Unlimited use of courtesy car
Generali Malaysia	Detariffed rates More add-on options Fast claims approval 24/7 emergency roadside assistance Repair warranty

Car insurance, also referred to as vehicle, auto or motor insurance is a contract signed between you and the insurance company. You as the insured party, agree to pay a premium to the insurance company annually. In return, the insurance company agrees to cover you for financial protection (to a certain degree based on your agreed policy) for loss and damage in the event of traffic accidents, fire and theft. In exchange for this financial protection, you have to pay and renew a premium to the insurance company every year.

There are three types of car insurance policies you can find in the Malaysian market, which are as follows:

1. Third Party Cover
   

   This is the most basic and cheapest car insurance policy offered by insurers. A third party policy basically protects you against the claims of others. If you get into a car accident with another vehicle, and that driver suffers from bodily injuries, this is when the third party car insurance comes in handy as it will help cover the damage caused to the other party.

   Under this policy, you are responsible for your own damages and losses, and the insurer will not give you any protection for your car as third party policy only covers you against losses, damages, or deaths caused to other parties.

2. Third Party, Fire and Theft Cover
   

   A third party, fire and theft car insurance policy basically works like a third party policy, but it provides additional coverage to your own vehicle in the event of accidental fire or when your car gets stolen.

   But bear in mind that this coverage only covers losses or damages to your car due to fire and theft. It does not include coverage for your car’s damages due to road accidents. Therefore, you can only file claims to the insurers for events where your car is damaged due to fire, gets stolen or is broken into.

3. Comprehensive Cover
   

   A comprehensive policy offers a wider range of coverage for any damage to your own vehicle and the third party vehicle. You still get to enjoy the same benefits as the third party, fire and theft policy, but with additional protection against losses and damages to your own vehicle.

   This policy is recommended if you can’t afford to bear the repair costs or expenses for your vehicle in the event of an accident. To encourage more comprehensive policy take-ups, some insurance companies even provide extra benefits for their comprehensive policyholders.

   However, vehicles that have not reached a certain age may not be qualified for protection under this policy. Due to its full-scale coverage, having a comprehensive car insurance policy will be more relevant for those who own or plan to purchase a relatively expensive car.

Below is a table comparison of the policies:

All drivers in Malaysia are mandated by law to possess car insurance in order to drive legally on the road. According to the Road Transport Act 1987, you’re liable up to RM1,000 in fine with a potential three years in prison if you’re caught driving without a valid car insurance.

In Malaysia, you must at least buy or renew a third party car insurance in order to get and renew your road tax, which is also mandatory for all vehicle owners. If you’re found driving with an expired road tax, you could be fined for up to RM3,000.

Not all events, damages and losses are covered by the policies we mentioned above. Even if your car insurance company claims they offer the best comprehensive plan, you still need to go through the terms and conditions as well as understand the details stated in the product disclosure sheet. You don’t want to blindly sign up for an important agreement without knowing what is not covered in the deal.

Here’s a list of events, losses or damages that may not be covered under your car insurance policy:

1. Your own death or bodily injury due to car accident
   

   Although you pay and renew your car insurance premium every year, you will not be covered for your own death, medical bills, injuries or funeral costs. Even if you’re signed to a comprehensive policy, it only covers the damages done to your own vehicle and the other party’s vehicle. However, if you need extra protection, some car insurance providers do offer additional coverage in the form of personal accident insurance in the policy.

   For a better alternative, you can purchase separate medical or personal accident insurance to help you finance the medical bills.

2. Your liability against claims from passengers
   

   You will not receive protection from any negligence or careless driving lawsuits filed against you by your passengers in the event that they sustain bodily injuries, experience death or damage while in your car. To avoid being held responsible for these claims, it is advisable to add passengers liability coverage to your policy.

3. Loss or damage to your vehicle from acts of nature
   

   Acts of nature or natural disasters such as floods, landslides, typhoons, earthquakes and storms can damage your vehicle. Your car insurance provider is not responsible for the damages caused by these unfortunate events. Alternatively, you have the option to purchase special perils - an additional coverage against natural disasters.

4. Wear and tear, depreciation, consequential loss, breakages or technical and mechanical failures
   

   The value of your car will eventually depreciate, and other parts will wear out over time. This means your car will lose a big percentage of its initial value, especially if the car has been in use for more than five years. Therefore, any loss or damage to your car due to wear and tear, such as corrosion or rust, will not be covered by the policy.

5. Stolen car accessories and parts
   

   Though there is no harm in upgrading or revamping your car, the policy will not bear any costs for repairs or replacements of car accessories caused by future damage or theft. These accessories include custom rims, leather seats, spoilers, paint, custom stereo system, exhaust system and more. Check with your insurer to see if they offer this coverage as an add-on.

Despite the word "comprehensive" in its name, a comprehensive car insurance policy doesn't actually cover all kinds of possible damages. However, the policy allows you, as the policyholder, to extend additional coverage according to your preferences.

Below are some of the common add-on features:

1. Windscreen coverage
   

   This add-on coverage is a good addition to your premium if you want to insure damages to your windscreen or car windows. Only available as a one-time off purchase, windscreen coverage can no longer be used once it has been claimed, but you can purchase it again for future coverage.

   Windscreen coverage includes the front and back windscreen, door window, sunroof glass window, and the tinting and security film on your car’s glass. It will cover all the costs needed if these glass parts are shattered, cracked or damaged.

   
   
   How is the windscreen premium calculated?
   A windscreen premium is calculated based on 15% of your windscreen value. For example:

   Windscreen value	RM2,500
   Windscreen premium	RM2,500 x 15% = RM375

   
   
   

   The value of your windscreen is determined by the car manufacturer or any workshops who can provide you with true values, which is defined as the price of a vehicle after assessing its value based on the condition of the car. The car valuation process includes checking the car's model, year of purchase and total kilometres driven by the car.

   
   
2. Special perils coverage

   Natural disasters covered under special perils include floods, windstorms, rainstorms, typhoons, landslides and other acts of nature that may damage the vehicle. Don’t wait until the flood ruins your engine; instead, consider this optional benefit to avoid spending a lot of money on the repair costs.

   
   
   How is the special perils premium calculated?
   The cost for this coverage is 0.5% of your sum insured for the vehicle for that year.
   For example:

   Vehicle sum insured	RM80,000
   Special perils premium	RM70,000 x 0.5% = RM400

   
   
   
3. Strike, Riot and Civil Commotion (SRCC)
   

   Although strikes and riots don’t often happen in Malaysia, we’ll never know what the future holds. This add-on coverage might come in handy if such events occur. It covers you against losses or damages to your vehicle due to strikes, riots and other civil commotions.

   
   

   How is the Strike, Riot and Civil Commotion (SRCC) premium calculated?

   The cost for this coverage is 0.3% of the sum insured.
   For example:

   Vehicle sum insured	RM80,000
   SRCC premium	RM70,000 x 0.5% = RM240

   
   
   
   
4. Passengers liability
   

   Car insurance policies exclude passengers liability as it is not compulsory for private car owners to cover the liabilities of their non-fare paying passengers. However, if the passenger gets injured, she or he has the right to sue, you, the driver for careless driving. But if you have this optional add-on in your premium, you will be covered for this claim.

   
   There are two types of passengers liability for car insurance:

   a) Legal liability of passenger

   This coverage protects you in case your passenger causes any harm or damage to other vehicles.

   
   For example:

   You’re driving together with your friends on a road trip, and one of them rolls down the window and throws away rubbish on the highway. This act startles the driver in the next lane, causing the driver to crash into the road divider and damage his car. Though the victim sues you for the accident, this add-on protects you from the legal trouble caused by your passengers.

   
   This premium costs RM7.50 per annum.

   b) Legal liability to passenger

   This coverage helps protect you against passengers who sue you for injuries caused to him or her.

   
   For example:

   You’re driving with your colleague to meet up with some clients and suddenly your phone notification pops up. While briefly reading the message, you accidentally run a red light and hit another car, causing injury to your colleague. Your colleague sues you for reckless driving. However, by having this add-on to your policy, you will be protected against the legal claims.

   
   This premium will cost you 25% of the third party premium.

   
   
5. Additional named driver
   

   Each car insurance allows two drivers to be included in the policy for free. With this add-on, you can have up to four drivers added to the premium, and it costs you about RM10 per person. This add-on is particularly helpful for those who have more than two persons in the household driving the same car.

   
   Here's how it works:

   Number of drivers	Cost (RM)
   1	Free
   2	Free
   3	RM10
   4	RM10
   5	RM10
   6	RM10
   Total	RM40

   
   

   With a maximum of RM40, you can name up to six different drivers to be covered within the one-year duration of the policy.

   
   
6. Car accessories coverage
   

   If you have invested a good amount of money pimping up your car with new accessories like leather seats, GPS navigation and rims, this add-on will compensate you for the damages or losses to your accessories in the event of an attempted burglary or accident. However, stolen tyres and loss of personal items such as wallets, handbags and laptops will not be covered.

   
   The premium costs you 15% of the value of affected car accessories.
   For example:

   Car accessories value	RM300 (GPS) + RM650 (Rims) = RM950
   Car accessories premium	RM950 x 15% = RM142.50

   
   
   
   
7. Compensation for Assessed Repair Time (CART)
   

   This optional add-on compensates you for the loss of use of your vehicle or for the inconvenience of not having your car. After being involved in an accident, where you’re not at fault, you might not have access to your car as it will be sent to the workshop for days or even weeks. Due to the inconvenience of not having your car, you are eligible to claim for CART and compensation of excess.

   The CART rate also depends on the number of working days required to fix the car rather than the number of days it stays in the workshop, subject to an adjuster’s recommendation.

   
   

   Here’s a standard scale of daily CART for personal vehicles as specified by Persatuan Insurans Am Malaysia (PIAM):

   Private car	CART per day
   Up to 1,500 cc	RM30
   Between 1,501 cc and 2,000 cc	RM40
   2,001 cc and above	RM50

   
   

Comparing car insurance deals can be a tedious process, but you can make it easier by focusing on several main factors. It’s easy to be spoiled with so many car insurance companies to choose from in Malaysia, all of which come with different deals, premiums and benefits.

But before that, ask yourself these questions -

• Is the insurance company reputable?
• How much coverage do you really need?
• Do you need any extra add-ons?
• Is the premium manageable?

Here are the five factors you should focus on when it comes to choosing car insurance:

1. Type of coverage
   

   It is always recommended to choose comprehensive policy as it will provide the most coverage for your vehicle as well as gives the option to include other add-on features to the policy. A third party policy or third party, fire and theft policy, on the other hand, might be suitable for an old car or if you rarely drive because of the lower risks associated with both.

2. Market value

   Market value is how much your car is worth or priced at dealerships before it was damaged or stolen. If your car is insured at the value of RM80,000 in the beginning, you can expect the market value to go down progressively over time. For example, let’s say your car value has depreciated to RM50,000, and you get into an accident that causes total loss of your vehicle, then your insurer will only be able to cover the current market value of RM50,000 instead of RM80,000.

   When you insure your car based on the market value, there’s a possibility for you to under-insure and over-insure your car depending on these two situations:

   
   Car market value: RM80,000
   

   a) Under-insure: This happens when you insure your car below the market value. The sum insured will be calculated based on the formula below:

   Formula: Loss amount payable = Sum insured/Market value x Assessed loss

   
   
   For example:
   

   You insure your car for half of the market value at RM40,000. If your car is involved in an accident that causes damage or loss amounting to RM20,000, your insurer can only cover half of the cost as agreed in the policy which is RM10,000 sum payable.

   Loss amount payable = RM40,000/RM80,000 x RM20,000 = RM10,000

   The balance RM10,000 will be borne by the policyholder.

   b) Over-insure: This is when you get your vehicle insured above the market value. When you over-insure your car, the claim amount will be subject to the market value of the car at the time of damage or loss.

   
   
   For example:
   

   You signed off a policy contract with an agreement to insure your car above the market value at RM85,000. When you get into an accident and your vehicle accumulates damages that cost RM20,000, your insurer will only provide the amount claimable based on the repair bill.

   Loss amount payable = RM85,000/RM80,000 x RM20,000 = RM21,250

   As a result, there’s a RM1,250 excess after the payout is calculated. However, this additional amount will not be credited back to you.

   
   
3. Agreed value
   

   An agreed value is the predetermined value of your car that you and the insurer have agreed upon at the beginning of the contract. The value is based on the vehicle’s model and age. By insuring your vehicle with an agreed value, there would be no risk of under or over-insuring your car. Should you have to claim based on a total loss or theft of your car, the payout will be based on the policy.

   
   For example:
   

   Your car is insured at the value of RM80,000 in the agreement. Once the value has depreciated to RM50,000 and you want to claim for damages, your insurer will cover based on the agreed value of RM80,000.

   
   

   Tip: Insurance companies recommend insuring your car based on the agreed value as it allows the policyholder to claim according to the value that has been specified in the policy.

4. Special perils
   

   Although it is only an add-on, you should always be ready for any catastrophic events that could happen. Since natural disasters can happen in an instant, it is reasonable to have your vehicle protected against floods, storms or landslides.

5. Customer support
   

   Does the insurance company provide 24/7 customer care support? If not, be sure to add it because you want to avoid not getting any response from your insurance company if or when your car breaks down at 3 a.m. in the morning. Most insurers now offer a 24/7 service for their customers, but you can still ask them for reassurance.

6. Consider buying online
   

   You can save more time by buying or renewing your car insurance online at CompareHero. By comparing different car insurance deals on a single platform, you get a more comprehensive look at the different options available in the market. Make your research and application easier with just a few clicks!

   
   

Previously, car insurance premium rates were almost the same for any insurance company as they were controlled and tariffed by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM). However, starting 1 July 2017 onwards, BNM implemented motor detariffication for all car insurance policies.

Detariffication is the removal of the tariff structure, allowing insurance companies to calculate premiums based on several factors to match a customer's risk profile. This simply means the insurer can charge you at a different premium price for the same risk behaviour, depending on the insurer’s business risk strategies.

Below are the risk factors insurance companies take into account to determine your car insurance premium:

1. Age and gender

   A lack of driving experience may require you to pay a higher premium. If you are a Competent Driving License (CDL) holder, or have passed your ‘P’ license, there is a higher possibility for you to pay the premium at a lower rate.

   According to the Global Status Report on Road Safety 2018, it is reported that Malaysia had over 7,000 fatalities due to traffic accidents in 2016, of which 87% were males. Therefore, these statistics indicate that female drivers are more likely to pay a lower car insurance premium compared to their male counterparts.

   The Road Safety Plan of Malaysia 2014-2020 states that road users from age groups 16-20 years old recorded the highest number of deaths followed by those from age groups 21-25 years old. This report shows that different risks are associated with different age groups, another important factor in determining your premium rate.

   
   
2. Occupation

   Careers like doctors, salespersons, site engineers and real estate brokers may be charged with higher premium rates. These careers are typically associated with high levels of stress and lack of sleep which can increase the risk of traffic accidents. Other high-risk jobs include those that require frequent on-road travelling and meeting clients at different locations.

   However, not every driver who has a high-risk occupation will have to pay a higher premium. For example, if you work as a real estate broker and use public transportation to commute to work, you get to have a lower premium rate.

   
   
3. Types of vehicles

   If you own an expensive car from a high-end model, your insurance premium will likely be higher. Luxury cars come with high-class features like carbon fibre, hydrophobic window, auto lane keeping and other specialised materials that will cost you a shedload of money to repair in the event of loss or damage.

   
   
4. Residential area

   Those who live in an area where the crime rate is high are more likely to receive a higher premium rate than those who live in a secured neighbourhood. If your house has a locked gate or you live in an access-controlled residence, then you will likely not be charged extra to your premium.

   
   
5. Claim history

   A bad credit score or bad history on previous car insurance claims will make your premium higher. If you have a record of road accidents caused by your own mistakes in your claim history, there’s a higher chance for your premium to increase. This also applies to situations where you were the victim in the car accident because of the risk you have in your driving record.

   
   

When buying car insurance, there are several extra fees and charges included. They are as follows:

1. Sales and Service Tax (SST) - The fixed SST rate of 6% is imposable to your insurance premium.
2. Stamp duty -A stamp duty fee of RM10 is charged before the final payment amount is calculated.
3. Commission - Buying insurance policy through an agent would add another 10% agent commission fee to your premium. However, this fee is excluded if you purchased directly with the car insurance company.
   
   
   Here’s an example of how the premium price is generated with all the fees:
   
   

   Gross premium	RM1,900
   6% SST	RM114
   Stamp duty	RM10
   Agent commission fee	RM190
   Total annual premium	RM2,214