Car Insurance
What is "Comprehensive Car" Insurance?
The purpose of comprehensive car insurance is to cover in particular:
bodily injury or property damage suffered by victims of traffic accidents and caused by the policyholder's vehicle or its trailers or semi-trailers;
Damages caused to the policyholder's vehicle;
Comprehensive car insurance covers any motorised land vehicle not connected to a railway.
The regulations in force (Article 120 of the Insurance Code) stipulate the obligation for any natural or legal person whose civil liability may be incurred as a result of the damage mentioned in point a) above to take out "Motor Vehicle Civil Liability" cover.
Garage owners and persons who are normally engaged in the brokering, sale, repair, breakdown or testing of motor vehicles, in respect of vehicles entrusted to them by virtue of their office, are obliged to insure themselves and persons working in their business and persons having custody or control of the vehicle with their authorisation or the authorisation of any person designated for this purpose in the insurance contract for their own liability.
What does the "Comprehensive Car Insurance" Contract Cover?
The car insurance contract covers, among other things :
Under the "Car Civil Liability" cover, whose standard general Terms and Conditions are set by Order of the Minister of Finance and Privatisation no. 1053-06 of 26 May 2006:
the pecuniary consequences of the civil liability which may be incurred by the policyholder for bodily injury or material damage to the person or property of third parties, resulting from accidents, fires or explosions caused by the policyholder's vehicle or arising from the equipment, accessories and products used for its use, the objects and substances which it transports, as well as from the fall of this equipment, accessories, products, objects or substances.
the pecuniary consequences of civil liability which may be incurred as a result of an accident caused by the opening of a door by any person with a view to taking a seat in the policyholder's vehicle or having taken a seat in that vehicle.
accidents caused by the policyholder's vehicle, whether it is occasionally towing a broken-down vehicle or is itself being towed by another vehicle.
If the policyholder's vehicle is a recovery vehicle, the guarantee applies when it is towing or transporting other vehicles and during recovery operations by this vehicle.
Under the Optional "Vehicle Damage" Covers, Subject to Payment of an Additional Premium:
"Third Party" cover: damage to the policyholder's vehicle in the event of :
collision with one or more other vehicles;
impact with a fixed or moving body (including people and animals);
rollover with or without prior collision;
falling objects or substances on the parked vehicle.
"Collision Damage" cover: damage to the policyholder's vehicle in the event of a collision with:
a vehicle (including horse-drawn vehicles, cycles with or without a motor) belonging to an identified third party, other than the policyholder or the owner of the policyholder's vehicle;
an identified pedestrian;
an animal belonging to an identified person or on motorways.
It should be noted that the "Collision Damage" guarantee cannot be combined with the "Third Party" guarantee.
"Fire" Cover: damage to the policyholder's vehicle is covered if this damage is the result of the following events: fire, conflagration, flashover, simple combustion, explosion or lightning strike.
"Theft" Cover: damage to the policyholder's vehicle is covered if this damage results from the disappearance or deterioration of the policyholder's vehicle following a theft or attempted theft.
"Glass Breakage" Cover: damage resulting from breakage to the elements indicated in the contract (e.g. windscreen, front and rear side windows, door windows, rear window, fixed or transparent sunroof, etc.) is covered.
"Flooding" Cover: damage to the policyholder's vehicle is covered when this damage is the result of abnormal water intensity caused by the events indicated in the contract. For example :
run-off water;
clogging and back-up of sewers;
tides and tidal waves;
overflow of springs and rivers;
moving masses of snow or ice.
Under the Optional Cover "Persons Transported by Car" Subject to the Payment of a Premium:
Bodily injury to policyholder Persons in the event of accidents involving the policyholder's vehicle is covered:
Accidental death: In the event of the death of the policyholder, the Insurer guarantees the payment of the capital provided for in the contract, if this death occurs either immediately or within one year after the date of the accident when the death is consecutive to the accident.
Permanent disability: In the event of permanent disability following a covered accident, and as soon as the injuries are consolidated, the Insurer guarantees payment to the policyholder of the sum corresponding to the policyholder capital multiplied by the rate of disability (assessed according to the scale attached to the contract).
Medical, pharmaceutical and hospitalisation expenses: the Insurer guarantees the policyholder Persons the reimbursement of medical, pharmaceutical and hospitalisation expenses incurred as a result of injuries caused by an policyholder accident.
The Rights and Obligations of the policyholder?
We invite you to refer to the "Insurance Guide" published on the ACAPS portal.
In addition, any person subject to the obligation to insure against "Motor Vehicle Liability" referred to in Article 120 of the Insurance Code who is refused insurance by an insurance or reinsurance company authorised to insure motor vehicle risks may refer the matter to ACAPS, which will determine the premium for which the insurance or reinsurance company concerned is obliged to insure the risk proposed.
What Does the Traffic Accident Guarantee Fund cover?
Where the persons responsible for traffic accidents are unknown or uninsured and unable to compensate the victims because of their insolvency, total or partial compensation for personal injury caused by a land motor vehicle not linked to a railway, or by its trailers or semi-trailers, is provided by the Traffic Accident Guarantee Fund, in accordance with the provisions of the Insurance Code (Articles 133 et seq.).
What Does the Authority do?
Within the framework of the powers vested in it by Law No. 64-12 establishing the Insurance and Social Security Supervisory Authority, the latter ensures that the insurance products offered to consumers are understandable, balanced, useful and comply with the regulations in force, and monitors the reliability of the information provided to policyholders and the fair treatment of policyholders by Insurers.
Legal/Judicial Remedies in Case of Dispute with Your Insurer?
In accordance with Article 7 of Law No. 64-12, the Insurance and Social Security Supervisory Authority has the power to investigate complaints from customers of insurance companies and the intermediaries (brokers) thereof. Nevertheless, it is recommended that you first contact the broker or Insurer against whom your complaint is directed. If the dispute persists after this step, you can contact ACAPS by one of the means at your disposal. The Authority shall then examine your complaint and take the most appropriate action, in accordance with the legal and regulatory provisions and within the scope of its powers, to settle the dispute
