During tough economic times it’s natural to look for places to trim the extra fat, so to speak. However, there are certain expenses in life that should only be cut out if it’s truly necessary. In a bid to win business, most markets have become extremely competitive resulting in various discounts and options to save you more money. Top of mind is the short term insurance industry. Insurance companies have done their utmost to innovatively come up with ways to help the South African consumer retain their cover and save money.
We’ve rounded up the cheapest short term insurance offers on the market today in an effort to help you keep your cover and stay in budget. After all, things like theft, damage, and accidents are still going to happen regardless of whether you can afford insurance or not. So it’s far better to have some cover than none at all.
The ‘drive less, pay less’ car insurance model
New to the market is a ‘drive less, pay less’ car insurance model, which allows you to pay less for comprehensive car insurance because you’re driving less. An example of this is the newly launched chilli insurance product, with premiums starting at R299pm. So if you drive less than 100km a month and your car isn’t worth more than R500,000, this is a super cheap option that could offer a lot of value. Especially considering that it’s unlikely that most South Africans will be going back to their ‘normal’ commute any time soon.
The no theft home insurance deal
While a lot of the discounts and new insurance products on the market are car-related, there are a few insurers that have launched a different take on home insurance to help people afford cover. 1 such example is the ‘no theft’ model, where you’re covered for everything that comprehensive home contents insurance includes, with the exception of anything related to theft. The best way to understand it is to think of a fire in your living room. If a fire breaks out accidentally in your living room then you’re covered for the ensuing damage and loss. But if a thief breaks in and starts a fire in your living room, then the damage and loss won’t be covered.
It could be considered a slightly risky albeit cheaper option, but it’s rather ideal for those living in secure residential estates and/or have a good security system installed. If you’re interested in exploring this route, take a look at this fire and fury home contents option.
The multiple car discount
Some insurance companies have introduced a multiple car discount, where if you insure more cars with a comprehensive policy, you’ll receive a discount on each car that you add on. Be careful, though, because multiple car insurance means different things to different insurance companies.
The best we’ve found is this multiple car discount here, which gives you a larger discount with each subsequent car that add to your policy. The first additional car gives you a 10% discount, the second car that you add brings you a 15% discount, and then for every other car after that you get 20% off. Each car gets its own 5-star level of comprehensive cover with its own excess amount that you’d pay if you claimed.
The R1 bicycle insurance
Another super cheap product on the market is a R1 insurance policy for certain expensive portable items that you’d normally cover under portable possessions insurance (for a higher price tag). What we’ve discovered is that if you have comprehensive car insurance, you have the option to insure your bicycle for just R1. We’ve also seen that if you have comprehensive motorbike insurance, you can cover your motorbike gear for R1.
It’s certainly the cheapest product on the market at the moment and we think it’d be a tough price to beat. Moreover, the details are pretty plainly spelled out on the website, telling you that you can add 1 bicycle per comprehensive policy that you have as well as that after a claim for a R1 item, your monthly premium for it may be reviewed.
The decreasing premiums offer
This 1 couldn’t not make our list, seeing as it was introduced to a bit of laughter in the industry, with many saying that it wasn’t a sustainable model. However, the company is still going strong over 8 years later and they’ve saved their clients hundreds of millions of Rands.
The way it works is that you take out their comprehensive car insurance and then through some technical calculations, your premium decreases on a monthly basis by a percentage that’s linked to the rate of depreciation for your specific car’s make and model. Basically, as your car’s value goes down so too does your premium. Which makes sense, seeing as your car’s value forms part of the premium calculation process.
If you’d like to find out more about this decreasing premium model, take a look here.
At the end of the day, you don’t have to cancel important expenses, like car and home insurance. You can always find a cheaper alternative, and we hope this info will help you find the best cover for your home and car for the best price that you can afford. It’s tough out there at the moment, and you deserve a financial break.
Posted in partnership with King Price Insurance
