2017 UAE Motor Insurance Rules

Posted on: 24th March 2017 in News

There’s all sorts of goodies that insurance companies will now have to provide to UAE motorists – but it remains a fact that new rules from the UAE Insurance Authority (IA) mean that over a third of UAE motorists are expected to pay more for their vehicle insurance this year. That’s because of a new minimum rate for fully comprehensive coverage (now AED 1300 for sedan models and AED 2000 for SUVs). Analysis by Compareit4me showed that 31% of sedan drivers and 43% of SUV drivers were paying less than the new minimum thresholds – with affected UAE motorists likely to paying an average of DH262 more this year than last year. The new unified schedule of premiums from the IA went live on January 1^st, 2017. Existing policies are not affected, but extensions and new policies will comply with the new rules.

New 2017 UAE Motor Insurance Rules

Many service advantages are offered to the motorist, but comes with a new financial burden that is likely to be widespread:

Higher Minimum Premiums

This is what UAE motorists are mostly complaining about. Minimum premiums for fully comprehensive coverage will now begin at AED 1300 (up from AED 1050) for sedan models, and start at AED 2000 for SUVs.

Free Replacement Car

If your vehicle is damaged in an accident which isn’t your fault, you will receive either:

• A replacement car
• Or compensation of up to a maximum of AED300 per day for ten days

Compulsory Cover for Close Family

Included in your new policy will be automatic coverage for close family members.

More Choice over Premiums

If you are looking for a fully comprehensive policy, you can now effectively build your own by getting individual quotes for third party insurance and “own damage” insurance; until now, insurance companies have sold the two areas of coverage as one quoted package, which didn’t give the motorist any choice.

Higher Cover for Damage

Cover for property damage will be proved at a maximum of AED 2m – eight times what it was before (AED 250k).

More Likely to Write off a Vehicle

If the chassis of your car is damaged irreparably, insurers will have to write the vehicle off completely rather than provide funds for repair.

Maximum Premiums

Premiums may not exceed 5% of the value of a saloon car and 7% of an SUV. This measure has been greeted as something that sounds great for everyday motorists, but actually may only impact the very top of the market. 

Lower Excesses

Policies will tend to be routinely offering lower excesses (but higher premiums). Motorists will still be able to select a higher excess voluntarily to benefit from lower premiums overall.