We have reached the end of another year.  I want to make use of this opportunity to thank each and everyone of you for your support during the past year.  We also want to wish you a blessed festive season.

With the holiday season on our doorstep and many of you going away for a well deserved break I decided to share some tips with you in general. I hope this will refresh your memories so that you can make changes on your policy should it be required before you leave on holiday.

Please also note that Steadfast will be closed Xmast week so please ensure you have your Insurance company’s contact number at hand as well as your 24hour emergency number.

Firstly I want to stress that you please do read your policy wording and schedule to ensure you are covered correctly and what you are covered for. Insurance Companies send new schedules to advise you of any changes/amendments that were made on your policy. They also send you new schedules if there were any changes in their security requirements or excesses. They also send new schedules if there is new requirements on a policy such as that they may require a lock safe for jewelry held at your home. It is for this reason that it is of utmost importance that you read these schedules that is send to you to ensure you adhere to their requirements and is correctly insured at all times.

Please take note that anything you insure must belong to you. You can not insure anything that does not belong to you since you do not have any insurable interest in another person’s belongings.

It is in your best interest to have some form of proof that items insured belongs to you since an insurance company has the right to request proof of ownership. Ownership of household goods may be proven by means of photographs, sales invoices and manuals of appliances ect. The only indisputable way to proof ownership of something is by means of an invoice/receipt of items bought or a proper evaluation certificate of items owned at inception of a policy. Alternatively it will be advisable to make use of professional evaluators to do an inventory of your household contents.

Please ensure that you adhere to the requirement of your policy pertaining to jewelry and jewelry restrictions, plus safe requirements.

It is advisable and in some cases required that everyone over the age of 18 residing with you including dependant children must be noted as co-insured on your policy should you wish for their belongings to be covered under your insurance policy.

A dependant child’s belonging’s who resides at a different address than your own is not covered unless you stipulate the address and the insured amount.

It is your responsibility to ensure that you are insured for the correct amounts. If you underinsure yourself only the ratable portion will be paid out in the event of a claim. As example: If you insured your contents for R100,000.00 and in the event of a claim it is found that you should have been insured for R200,000.00 only half of your claim minus the excess payable will be paid out to you since you were 50% underinsured.

Should you change address your policy must be amended. If you do not change your address the insurance company has the right to repudiate your claim since you will be at a different risk address than the one they insured.

If you have any outbuildings or buildings or rooms built onto your home, which is of non-standard construction, such as Gemini Huts, u must specifically note this, since the items kept in such a hut or room must be specified and due to the high fire risk the actual wooden building has to be separately insured. Take note that not all Insurance Companies will accept this risk. To insure the contents of such a building will also normally cost more since the risk of fire is higher in such a building.

Vehicle older than 15 years requires an evaluation. The Insurance Company will never pay out the retail value of such a vehicle, unless you have provided us with an evaluation certificate to proof what the actual value of this vehicle is, and please keep in mind that a vehicle depreciates every year. 10. If your vehicle is registered as a re-built or has a SAPVIN registration number we have to be notified since special arrangements must be made to insure these vehicles. The majority of insurance companies do not insure these vehicles and those that do only insure it for a portion of the value.

If you selected car hire or any other extra option such as roadside assistance or excess buster on your policy you must please ensure that you understand exactly how it works and what the procedures are in the event of a claim. This will prevent disappointment in the event of a claim should it work differently than you thought.

Items you remove from you home is not covered unless specified such as: bicycles, camera’s and video camera’s, jewelry, fur coats and leather jackets, sporting and camping equipment, hearing aids, glasses and prescription glasses, cell phones, car radio’s, laptop computers ect. Sporting equipment is normally also not covered when in use. It is advisable to ensure you can proof ownership of specified items by means of a receipt/invoice; alternatively an evaluation certificate done at inception of your policy.

If you do not have burglar bars in front of all opening windows and security gates in front of all the door’s leading to the outside of your home and outbuildings you will not be entitled to theft cover unless you have a linked alarm linked to an armed response unit. Please ensure that your linked alarm is activated whenever you leave your home or go to sleep at night. Also have it tested to prove that it was in operational order. If it was a condition of your policy that you must have a linked alarm than you have to abide by the endorsement.

If you have chosen Excess Buster as an additional benefit on your policy you must be aware that this only covers the basic excess on your policy. It does not cover additional excesses. Also it does not cover family members

If you have chosen accidental damage cover on your contents you will only be covered up to the limit the insurance company stipulated in the policy wording. Also be aware that certain insurance companies exclude electric and electronic equipment from cover.

If your vehicle was not fitted with a factory fitted VSS system you must ensure that you adhere to the security requirements of the insurance company. Without a VESA Certificate you will not be able to prove that your Gear lock is VESA approved since it is the only way that a Gear lock is fitted that makes it VESA approved. Same with the Immobilizer Alarm system since you need to prove that it is a level 3 or 4 that is Vesa approved. Should you have a tracking device installed in your vehicle please insure you have it tested at least quarterly to proof that it was operational.

If you live in a commune you cannot insure your household contents. A commune means 3 or more people living together that are not related to each other.

If you own any valuables such as expensive portraits or inherited items, it is best to have it evaluated on inception of the policy, to ensure that these items will be covered.

Any extra’s that is non-standard to your vehicle such as, 18”tyres instead of the normal 15”tyres that your vehicle came factory fitted with, needs to be specified and noted on the policy if you require cover. Extras such as tow bars; bull bars must also be noted with there value should you wish for this to be insured.

Please take note that the majority of Insurance Companies has special exclusions such as damage to tyres caused by road punctures, cuts or bursts or by the application of brakes will not be covered. Please ensure you read your policy wording carefully.

Please take note that if the extras on your vehicle such as Spoilers, Mags, bigger tyres or exhausts get damaged or stolen the standard vehicle excess will be applicable.

Kindly ensure that your pool cleaning systems, for example Creepy Crawlies, portable pools and pool pumps are specified.

Please note that dishonest act of a domestic worker will not be covered under your Short term insurance policy.

If you are planning on going on holiday and your home will be left unoccupied for more than 60days, you need to notify us in writing so that we can arrange for additional cover with your Insurance Company.

Kindly note, if you purchase a vehicle by means of a Cheque, please ensure the Cheque has been cleared before taking delivery of the vehicle, should a Cheque not be cleared, or bounce, you as a client will be held liable for any damages caused after taking delivery of the vehicle.

The regular driver noted of a vehicle is of utmost importance. If you said you are the regular driver and the circumstances change and your son becomes the more regular driver a claim will not be honored if you did not inform us of this change. The premium is different for a 40 year old that has had his license for 25 years compared to a 21 year old that may had his license for one or two years. Believe me it does not pay to be dishonest as to whom the regular driver is.

If you are listed on the ITC (Credit Bureau), please do declare this to your Insurance Company, because this might be seen as non-disclosure and a claim will not be paid.

Please feel free to ask questions should you have any. We are here to serve you and our aim is to provide excellent service and peace of mind to you.

Our number 031-4648310/4631719

Happy Holidays from the Steadfast Team

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