Car and Motor Insurance FAQ

It is your responsibility to declare the insured value of your car, and this should reflect the current market value of your vehicle. As the market value of a vehicle is continuously changing, we recommend that you revise this value regularly since the amount payable in the event of a total loss which may be covered under your policy will be the market value at the time of the loss. Market value means the cost to purchase a car which is the same or very similar to yours. Your estimate should include accessories, spare parts and duty. If your car is a rare model or else it has a very low mileage and is in still in showroom condition then you may need to have it professionally valued by an approved vehicle assessor. If you need assistance or advice with valuing your car please contact us.

This depends on whether you choose to extend the policy to cover other drivers or choose to restrict the number of drivers, which, in some cases, may result in a cheaper premium. Please remember that if you want your car to be driven by persons aged under 25 years, the premium will be considerably higher. It is important to remember that there may be instances where we may not be able to cover to other drivers, this will depend on the power and value of the car. Your policy also continues to provide you with full protection while your car is in the custody of a motor repairer for service or repair, irrespective of any limitations on drivers and use, however this cover does not protect the repairer who needs to have his own insurance protection.

This is the amount you will have to pay towards each and every loss for which there is a claim. This amount can vary and depends on the age of the person driving at the time of the accident, the nature of the loss and any special terms on your policy which increase the standard amount of the excess. Full details of these excesses can be seen in the policy document, but as a general indication, the excess for a person aged 25 years or over driving a standard car is €50 for accidental and/or third-party damage, and €200 for theft.

If you have Comprehensive cover, you are entitled to compensation for the hiring of a replacement vehicle up to a specified amount. This means that irrespective of blame in an accident, you can recover the costs to hire a replacement car when you are claiming damages to your vehicle. The number of days for which you can hire a replacement vehicle is determined by agreement between your repairer and our surveyor and reflects the period of repairs, In any case, the maximum amount which you can claim under your policy will depend on the limit you chose to extend your policy. The maximum amount payable in any one period of insurance is €250. We have a number of rental firms who can offer you their services at advantageous terms, so we can arrange the rental for you.

If you do not have Comprehensive cover, and you are involved in a traffic accident for which you are not to blame, you are normally entitled to recover the reasonable costs of hiring a replacement vehicle from the insurers of the responsible driver. It is always best that before you hire a replacement vehicle you contact the insurer of the responsible car to confirm the daily rate and the number of days you are entitled to hire a car.

This depends very much on the cover you choose, the following are some examples:

• No Claims Discount: You can earn up to 65% discount (see the next question)
• Limited Drivers: If you limit driving to yourself and to one other named driver such as your spouse or partner, you can earn up to 10% discount
• Higher Excess: You can increase the excess for a further discount
• More than one vehicle insured: If you insure more than one vehicle with us you earn a 10% discount

If you do not make a claim your premium will be discounted. You start off with 20% for the first year and end up with 65% after four years. This discount is transferable only as follows:

• from one insurer to another
• from one car to another
• between spouses
• between an individual and a limited liability company (if an individual owns more than 50% shareholding).

You may protect your NCD at an additional cost so that it is not reduced if you register a claim, in some cases, the NCD is automatically protected.

If you are under the age of 25 years old and taking out motor insurance for the first time you can benefit from a 65% discount immediately and start earning your No Claims Discount as well.  Click here for information about our Boosh policy.

You may be entitled to a discount if you have been driving a company-owned car and registered no claims in the past four years.  Contact us for more information.

If a claim is reported under your policy, your no claims discount will be affected as follows upon the renewal of your policy:

If you are insured under a Private Third Party Only policy all of your no claims discount will be lost unless you have 65% NCD.

If you are insured under a Third Party Fire & Theft or a Comprehensive policy your No Claims Discount will “step-back” by two years.

You may protect your NCD at an additional cost when you have earned 50% or 65% NCD. However, if you spend one claim-free year at 65% NCD on a Comprehensive or Third Party Fire & Theft policy, your discount will be automatically protected for free. This protection only applies when the person in charge of the vehicle at the time of the accident is 25 years of age or over.

If after registering a claim your NCD was reduced or lost and eventually you are found not to have been responsible for the accident, you will be refunded with any additional premium that you were charged. This is however subject to us having been able to make a full recovery of the full amount paid under your claim from the responsible driver or his/her insurer.

We strongly recommend that you report to us immediately any incident that may lead to a claim.

If you hold a Comprehensive policy then, irrespective of whether you are to blame for the accident or not, you are entitled to claim for compensation of your damages under your policy and we will then take the necessary action to settle your claim.

If you hold a Third Party Only or a Third-Party Fire & Theft policy, we can offer you advice as how best to proceed to counter any claims for compensation from a third party against you and how to recover any damages you incurred.  However, we will not be able to take any legal action in your name as any damages you suffer are uninsured under your policy

A total loss means that your car is irreparable, or the costs of repair exceed its market value.  Assuming that your policy covers the accident, which caused the total loss, the maximum amount we will pay you will be the market value of your vehicle at the time of the loss as established by our motor surveyor. The amount payable is limited in any case to your estimate of value that is shown on the Policy Schedule if this is lower than the market value.

If you are going abroad for a short trip with your vehicle, your policy provides you with the minimum third-party liability insurance required by law in all EU member states.  We suggest that you get in touch with us a few days before departure so that we can provide you with the necessary information and documents that you will need when driving abroad.   If you have a Private Car comprehensive policy you can benefit from the same cover you have in Malta while driving in another EU state at no additional premium, for up to 30 days in one year. You are however required to inform us prior to departing so that we can issue a confirmation of cover before this cover becomes effective.   For other types of policies or cover you will need to pay an additional premium to have the same cover when driving abroad.   If you are travelling outside the EU, we will need to provide you with a Green Card (international certificate of insurance) which is issued at an additional premium.  Our motor policy is intended for vehicles that are used predominantly in Malta, so if you intend to take your car abroad for a long period of time, we may not be able to provide you with any motor insurance cover at all, and you may need to purchase that from the country where the vehicle will be used.  We are also unable to provide cover for vehicles that are not registered in Malta, although we can assist in some cases where a car is purchased from another EU country and is to be registered in Malta. You can also benefit from roadside assistance cover when driving abroad with your vehicle, click here for more information about driving abroad.

The premium for young drivers can be very expensive, so we have come up with a special policy for them known as “Boosh”. Click here for more info.

You may report an incident to our offices in various ways.

• You may download and use our Claim Easy smartphone app which provides you with easy-to-follow instructions and the facility to report the accident to us immediately
• You may call at our Head Office, Branches, or at the intermediary from who you had purchased the policy
• You can also report the incident through this website by clicking here

If you lose or misplace the log book / license disc, please submit the filled declaration form – VEH 39 VEH (gov.mt)  available from Transport Malta, together with a copy of your ID card. The replacement logbook / disc will be issued against a fee of €18.

For further information please contact Transport Malta on +356 2122 2203 or  [email protected]