Anyone who buys a car inevitably has to deal with the topic of insurance protection, because in Germany nobody is allowed to go on the streets without a valid motor vehicle liability insurance. This statutory insurance covers the costs of the other party in the accident in the event of damage. However, damage to your own vehicle will not be reimbursed and must be paid for by the person who caused the damage. Voluntary supplementary insurance such as partial or fully comprehensive insurance offer more protection.
Claims payments
As a rule, damage from marten bites is covered in the case of partially comprehensive insurance. It is worthwhile to make sure that the consequential damage caused by animal bites is also covered, because these are often a lot more expensive than just a bitten through cable. Storm damage such as hail, flooding or lightning, theft, fire and short-circuit damage are usually covered by partial comprehensive insurance.
Small stone chips out of nowhere are annoying and can quickly break the glass of the windshield and thus lead to relatively high costs. Partially insured persons get the new window replaced for a pre-determined deductible.
Just as uncontrollable are clashes with game, which almost always cause major damage to the vehicle. It is worth taking a closer look at the so-called “extended game damage clause”: Some old contracts only cover deer, wild boar, foxes, badgers, hares, while most of the new ones protect collisions with all animals.
Accident damage to your own vehicle for which the owner is responsible will not be accepted. Car owners can find out from their insurance company exactly what is covered by comprehensive insurance.
A fully comprehensive insurance usually covers the same damage as the partially comprehensive insurance and also covers vandalism and accident damage to your own vehicle. This can range from a small parking mishap to a total loss. It is not possible to generalize generally when which insurance is worthwhile, but there are certainly a number of criteria for the decision-making basis.
Age and value are decisive
Comprehensive insurance is often recommended for new cars, leased vehicles or credit-financed cars. It applies the new value of the car in the months after the purchase.
The partially comprehensive cover usually replaces the current value of the vehicle in the event of damage. This depends on its age and condition, which is why additional partial comprehensive insurance for very old cars is hardly worthwhile. It is usually used when fully comprehensive insurance is no longer profitable due to the vehicle being too low in value.
Contributions
With comprehensive insurance, it is first determined which type class the car has. Your own postcode and theft statistics of the vehicle model are also included in the calculation. So that the premiums are not so high, it is advisable to include a deductible premium in the contract. With partial coverage, the amount is often set at 150 euros, with fully comprehensive insurance it is often set at 300 euros.
A major difference between the two insurances is that the no-claims discount is included in a fully comprehensive insurance: In accident-free years, the discount increases and the premium decreases.
Iris Mller
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