Motor Insurance

Insurance - Motor

• Cancellation procedure - of a military registered vehicle

  Mid-term:
  There are two ways to terminate a German motor insurance policy prior to renewal that cover a vehicle registered via a non-German Registration Office.

  1. The insurer MUST receive a copy of the official de-registration certificate.
     Depending on the Registration Office, the certificate might carry an official title, e.g.:
     • AE Form 190-1S (USAREUR)
     • Attestation SHAPE CPC (SHAPE)
     • BFG Form 272 (British Forces in Germany)
  2. Extraordinary right of termination after a claim
     After an eligible claim both parties (insurer / insured) have the right to cancel the contract within one month after the claim has been closed, which needs to be announced in writing.

   

  One month's notice
  Prior to renewal send in one months' notice to not renew the contract in writing / text form

   

  The following means are not accepted!

  • Bill of Sale / Purchase Invoice with both buyer's & seller's signature and preferably not older than one month
  • Proof of New Insurance stating the make & model, preferably also the chassis number (only applicable if leaving Germany!
  • Scrap certificate

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• Cancellation procedure - What does the USAREUR de-registration certificate look like?

  Returning your USAREUR plates to the Licencing Office you will be issued the so-called AE FORM 190-1S as proof of de-registration. Following this link shows a sample.
   

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• Coverage - 'Abroad Claim Protection'

  Abroad Claim Protection (ACP) enables the possibility to claim on your own insurance in the event of an incident abroad and caused by a Third Party. Making use of this optional benefit you will neither have to deal with the foreign insurer nor their domestic legislation. Instead one will receive reimbursement based on German insurance law that is considerably more sophisticated compared to most other countries. Hence, the primary purpose of ACP is financial safety should the other party's insurance decline payment or start delaying reimbursement, etc. ...

  Important to understand is until one’s own insurer receives reimbursement of costs from the opposing liability insurer, using Abroad Claim Protection is initially treated as a claim against your own (liability) insurance. Therefore, it is crucial that at the time of accident the police are called out, and if not possible, then at least the European Accident Form has been completed and signed by both parties to rule out contradictory statements later on.

  Bottom line:
  If you frequently travel thru different countries, it is definitely worth having and can save a lot of hassle should one ever be involved in an accident.
  ERICON - as your constant companion - will of course always try to help, thus communicate with the other party's insurer on your behalf, yet unfortunately there are companies that make things more complicated than necessary and follow only one objective - avoid paying or at least delay reimbursement for as long as possible.

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• Coverage - Do I still have insurance if my vehicle has been de-registered, yet ownership not yet transferred?

  For transitional periods, or when fiited with season-plates (German: Saisonkennzeichen) but stored away during the off-season period, German insurers provide so-called ‘dormant insurance’ (German: Ruheversicherung). During this period of max. 18 months, and only if the vehicle remains off public roads, liability and, if purchased, Partial Casco coverage remain insured free of charge.

  Also, a few of those motor insurance providers offering more comprehensive plans continue to cover those risks that fall under Full Casco coverage too.

   

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• Coverage - Can you insure my vehicle in SHAPE, Belgium?

  Yes, we insure NATO personnel in Belgium, however are limited to one company - Allianz Deutschland.
  For a quotation, please follow this link.

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• Claims - Which incidents need to be reported to the police?

  The insurers expect the following incidents related to motor insuance to be reported to the policy without delay.

  • Theft
  • Burglary
  • Vandalism
  • Parking incidents*
  • Damages caused by game**

  
  * Relates to policies with the extra "parking benefit", covered by the Partial Risk module. Hence not the damage your moving vehicle has caused to another parked vehicle but vice versa - some other vehicle has damaged your car.

  ** These can also be reported to the local forstery office.

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• Claims - Can I receive reimbursement of a self-infliced damage based on the repair-cost estimate?

  Not all but most service-motor insurers reimburse casco claims based on just a repair-cost estimate. Although presenting an assessor report is the more profitable approach, due to the additional expense commissioning an expert entails, especially for claims related to older vehicles it makes more sense to present the insurer a repair-cost estimate, knowingly that some costs won't be reimbursed until the repair-invoice is presented.

  Expenses that are initially not reimbursed: Higher hourly rates and material costs of a brand-linked dealerships Storage costs Value Added Tax (VAT)

  Expenses that are often not refunded: Depreciation Loss of Use

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• Finance & Lease - Transfer of Security

  When taking out a loan or lease on a vehicle, the 'object of desire' itself is often enough sufficient security for the creditor (bank).

  Consequently, it is then the loanee's/ lessee's responsibility to make sure the value is secured, hence Fully Comprehensive cover becomes inevitable to cover the financial consequences in the event of a bigger incident or even total-loss (write-off or theft). This hedging measure also entails a requirement set by the creditor, in which the borrower cedes his right of financial reimbursement to the bank.
  This is called 'Transfer of Security'.

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• General - Do I need a Green Card for travelling in the EU?

  In many countries the police like to see the International Insurance Certificate ('Green Card') after an accident for assurance that the vehicle has liability insurance and simply because it contains all necessary information.

  In all countries of the European Economic Area (i.e. the EU, Croatia, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway), as well as in Andorra, Monaco, San Marino, Serbia and Switzerland, the International Insurance Certificate is however no longer mandatory upon entry. In these countries the so-called Licence-Plate-Agreement applies, thus authorities have assurance that liability coverage is in place by checking the registration plate.

  In the following countries a Green Card is mandatory:

  • Albania
  • Azerbaijan
  • Belarus
  • Bosnia-Herzegovina
  • Iran
  • Israel
  • Macedonia
  • Morocco
  • Moldova
  • Montenegro
  • Russia
  • Tunisia
  • Turkey
  • Ukraine

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• General - Should my 'Green Card' not be green?

  For all those unaware, the International Insurance Certificate, commonly known as „Green Card “, is evidence that the vehicle has liability coverage for when travelling abroad.
  Since 1965 these certificates have always been green, yet as of 1st July 2020 they are also acceptable on plain white paper, allowing motorist to receive these digitally and print them themselves.

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• No Claims Discount - Temporary certificates for when leaving Germany

  On behalf of most insurance companies we are authorised to issue a "Temporary No Claims Discount certificate" and can produce this in English, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Spanish or even Turkish.

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• No Claims Discount - Requirements to get a foreign certificate accepted in Germany

  There are several rules & regulations differing from insurer to insurer but in general the certificate must be:

  • Original
  • Issued by the insurer – not the broker!
  • Must state
    • a policy holder
    • claim-free insured years (some exceptions possible)
    • cancellation date
  • Translated, if not in English or German (the majority of insurances accept non-official translations)

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• No Claims Discount - How does the system work in Germany?

  In Germany the No Claims Discount (NCD), called "Schadenfreiheitsrabatt", has the biggest impact on the premium you pay. The more years claim-free insurance you can show, the cheaper the insurance will cost.
  To prove the amount of years the entitlement will either be electronically transferred from one German insurer to the other, or the client can send in an original certificate from a foreign insurer, which must state an expiry date and the amount of years claim-free insurance accumulated.

  What clients from overseas are often not aware of is that in Germany NCD is linked to a policy number, thus not to a specific person. Consequently, if a person can prove a personal claim-free record of 30+ years, this entitlement will still only be able to be used with just one policy.

  The actual NCD German insurers' grant depends on the amount of years a person has been a policy holder and the entitlement is split into Liability- & Full Casco (Own Damage) related discount. Technically this is described as: SF KH & SF VK.
  
  Example:
  On taking out car insurance with more than 3 years driving experience (EU driving licence required as proof), you will be granted SF1/2, which normally equals 70%. In money terms this means that if the annual premium without any discount (100%) was 1,000€, the following year it will reduce to 700€. And depending on whether the contract commences before or after 30th June, if after, the policy will automatically be granted SF1 - one full year NCD - as of the subsequent 1st January. The savings difference between SF1/2 and SF1 is approx. 10%.

  The maximum amount of years you can achieve is endless, however the lowest percentage nowadays is generally at 25% for both Liability and Comprehensive, provided that SF35 has been reached.

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• Payments - What happens if I fail to pay a subsequent motor insurance premium on time?

  Failing to make a subsequent payment with a German motor insurer does not mean coverage lapses as from the payments due-date.
  Once in arrears, the insurer will send a first reminder, normally within 2-3 weeks, stating the following.

  1. > Please make payment within 2 weeks after receiving this letter
     "After receiving this letter" in legal terms does not mean, when physically opening the envelope but within max. 3 working-days after the print-date of such.
      
  2. > Should the arrears not be settled within the 2-weeks' granted term of payment, insurance coverage will be terminated thereupon
      
  3. > Should the arrears be settled after the 2-weeks' granted term of payment, insurance coverage will be reinstated as from the date and time the bank has been instructed to transfer the payment or the insurer has debited the account, both scenarios subject to sufficient funds on account.

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• Registration procedure - Required documents for the NATO/ BFG vehicle licensing offices

  When taking out an insurance policy we give you the so-called double-white card, which you will have to present at your NATO POV/ BFG registration office (BFGLO).

  In addition you will also need the following documents for NATO:

  • Technical / inspection report
  • US Drivers License (for NATO personnel only)
  • Vehicle's log-book
  • ID

   For the BFGLO you need:

  • Proof of payment from your insurer / agent

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• Registration procedure - Which are GEO (BFG) approved motor insurers??

  To ensure your motor insurer will be accepted by Vehicle Licensing it is advisable to choose one approved by Global Support Organisation (Germany).

  • Belgium:
    • AGEAS
  • Canadian:
    • TF Insurance Services Ltd (CND)
  • German
    • Ergo
    • Allianz
      provided by ERICON broker (link)
    • Volkswohl Bund
      provided by MIRASCON
  • United Kingdom:
    • Aviva Ageas Service Insurance Co
      provided by Forces Financial
    • Forces Mutual
    • Forces Solutions
    • Markerstudy
    • Liverpool & Victoria Insurance for UKBC/UKBT (CSMA members)
      provided by Frizzell Financial Services
    • Towergate Wilson
    • Zenith

  Note:
  By addressing your application to OC BFG VLO (MAIN), BFPO 39 it is possible to check whether your non-listed insurer might still be accepted whilst posted to Germany.

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• Registration procedure - Using the German registration offices (non-POV or BFGLO)

  Yes, it is possible. Should you decide to register your vehicle outside the military environment, you will have to inform us so we can issue the so-called EVB number, as without you cannot register your vehicle. This number is not required for NATO registration!

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