How a Waiver of Excess Works

On insurance policies in the UK you are likely to see a waiver of excess. This is a part of the insurance policy that is similar to a deductable in the United States. It’s the amount of money that you have to pay before the insurance company covers the damages to your vehicle. If you travel to the UK and have to rent a car then you’ll be likely to see a waiver of excess.

When the amount of the waiver of excess is exceeded in damages then you pay the amount of the waiver of excess and the insurance company covers what’s left over. So if you have a waiver of excess of $1,000 and an accident causes $5,000 in damages to your vehicle then you will have to pay the $1,000 up front and the insurance company will cover the other $4,000. While a waiver of excess is not included in the premium of the insurance policy you pay it is still very helpful.

In the example above you’d be better off paying the $2,000 rather than having the insurance company pay the difference and then raise the premium of your car insurance because you made a claim. If you’re a young driver you should be cautious before reporting an insurance claim as most insurance companies will increase the premium by a good amount.

Your excess waiver amount will vary depending on what insurance plan you decide to go with. The higher the deductible that you choose the lower insurance premium will be. If you are a safe driver and have very few claims then you will benefit more from having a higher deductible. However this can cause problems if you are in an accident and end up not being able to pay the excess waiver at the time.

On some insurance policies you will see a percent for the waiver of excess rather than an actual amount. The percent can work for you or against you depending on your situation. If you have a low cost accident then the percent will be in your favor. However if the accident is an expensive one then you will be in a situation where you’ll have to pay a lot more.

The waiver of excess that you pay will go towards the damages done to your vehicle. The damage doesn’t have to be caused by an accident it can be also caused by theft or bad weather. You can increase the coverage if you have a more expensive vehicle and want to have to pay less to repair it.

A waiver of excess is not singled out to auto insurance policies. A waiver of excess is often found on health, travel, and home insurance. You should remember that if there’s damage to a rental car you may have to pay it out of your pocket and then be reimbursed by your insurance.

Graham McKenzie is the content syndication coordinator for Carinsurancesa.co.za. South Arica?s leading Car Insurance portal, which provides cover for all Car Insurance types.