Short-term insurer Mutual & Federal has launched a new facility, which allows visitors to its website to click through to car value calculations to ensure that they are paying premiums calculated on the reasonable retail value of their cars.
You have to enter the make, model and year of your car to obtain a reasonable estimate of how much it should be insured for. Mutual and Federal also provides information about which accessories could increase the value of your vehicle for insurance purposes.
This enhancement of the www.mf.co.za site follows the recent change by Mutual & Federal from motor insurance based on market value to the more flexible reasonable retail value approach.
Chris Grieve, the general manager at M&F, says the greater flexibility of the reasonable retail value model can work in your favour when your car is stolen or written off.
Even so, consumers may still face disappointment if there is a significant difference between the current reasonable retail value of the car and an old value that has remained in place in an insurance policy for years.
The onus is on the policyholder to review the sum insured on a motor vehicle on an annual basis. The fact that a premium remains constant does not entitle the policyholder to a constant value. The value in the new, improved Allsure policy is determined by the reasonable retail value.
Policyholders without internet access should consult their brokers about these issues. In fact all policyholders - with or without internet access - should speak regularly to their brokers about potential savings or getting more for their money by taking advantage of new covers available under the new Allsure policy.