“If I am injured in an accident caused by myself, will car insurance cover me?”
Based on the question above, what type of insurance can give you coverage in such a situation? In this case, car insurance coverage or personal accident insurance coverage?
Regardless, some may not understand the form of coverage offered by these two. Hence, let us explain how do these two coverages differ from one another.
What is car insurance?
In Malaysia, every car owner is mandated to ensure the validity of their car insurance for legal use on the road. As a result, you will be penalised by the authorities if you get caught driving without valid insurance.
What does your car insurance cover?
- Compensate in the event of car theft or fire, depending on the type of policy you choose
- Cover your car damages if the accident was your fault (applicable for comprehensive policy)
- Provides cover to you (the insured) against third-party liabilities
Note that your insurer will not compensate you in the event of death or injury in an accident caused by you. In contrast, the coverage is only provided to the third party (the other involved party).
What is personal accident insurance?
Compared to car insurance, personal insurance coverage is more of a type of optional coverage. That being so, everyone doesn’t need to purchase it.
Personal Accident insurance or PA insurance is an annual policy that provides compensation in case of:
- Injuries
- Disability, or
- Death caused solely by violent, accidental, external, and visible events
You can buy this personal accident insurance product as one of the insurance coverage products. In brief, this insurance product allows you to receive compensation if you are injured, diagnosed with a permanent disability, or pass away in an accident.
On top of that, you can also purchase this personal accident insurance product through insurance renewal.
On the whole, the premium for this additional coverage varies across insurance providers. But, some insurers include the coverage for free for comprehensive policyholders. Examples are Liberty dan Takaful Malaysia.
Differences between car insurance and personal accident insurance
The followings are some key comparisons between car insurance and personal accident insurance:
| Car insurance | Personal accident insurance |
| Compulsory for vehicle owner | Not compulsory, optional coverage |
| Subject to annual renewal | No need for annual renewal |
| Does not cover your injury or death caused by an accident | Cover your injury or death caused by an accident |
| Coverage amount is based on market value or the value agreed upon insurance renewal | Coverage amount is limited, as determined by the insurance company |
| Premium will be cheaper the following year (according to NCD rate) | Premiums are not reduced |
Protect yourself with personal accident insurance
In sum, any type of insurance is necessary to protect you according to the circumstances. Car insurance helps to cover your vehicle damage. Meanwhile, personal accident insurance will help you cope with death, injury, or disability caused by an accident.
Thus, we recommend you get both coverages for extra protection in the future. We do not wish difficulties or tragedies to happen to you. But it is better to prepare for the worst.
To begin with, you may visit Bjak’s website to purchase this additional coverage. Comparing insurance policies is undoubtedly easy as you can do it completely online. Wherever you are, you can conveniently compare up to 15 insurance quotations for free.
Bjak is one of Malaysia’s largest car insurance comparison sites. Get free quotes at Bjak and renew car insurance and road tax online in just 5 minutes.
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