Occupant damage insurance: what exactly does it mean?

Passenger indemnity insurance is an additional insurance you can take out with your car insurance. With passenger indemnity insurance, not only are you yourself, but your passengers are also insured in the event of an accident. Suppose you become permanently disabled or even die after an accident. With passenger accident insurance, both personal injury and damage to luggage or clothing are compensated. The amount the insurer pays out equals the actual damage incurred.

One advantage of passenger accident insurance is that it also pays out in an accident where no one is liable, such as a collision with an animal. There is of course no third-party coverage for the other party, so you would normally have to pay the costs yourself. With passenger accident insurance, you will always receive immediate compensation for the damage, because it does not matter who is responsible for the accident. This allows you to eliminate as much risk as possible.

What is covered by passenger indemnity insurance?

Passenger indemnity insurance compensates the damage suffered by the driver and passengers of the motor vehicle involved in an accident. This damage can include property damage (clothing, luggage, etc.), loss of income, domestic help, transport costs, medical costs, compensation and funeral costs. The maximum insured amount per event for all insured persons together is usually around 1 million euros. If you would like a fixed amount in advance in the event of death or disability, you can take out accidental passenger insurance in addition to this insurance.

Is the benefit independent of fault?

In the case of passenger accident insurance, it does not matter who is at fault for the accident. When one of the occupants suffers damage as a result of an accident and this damage cannot be recovered from another insurance, the occupant can claim this damage from the passenger insurance. Especially when the other party cannot be traced, this is desirable. Should you not have taken out this coverage and the other party is unknown, you will not receive any payment when the other party is at fault.

If the driver is at fault for the accident, the passengers still have the option of holding the vehicle's third-party insurance liable and recovering any damages from it. However, if the question of guilt is unclear, this can be a long process that can be avoided by purchasing passenger insurance.

Explanation of passenger accident insurance (SVI) coverage.

As the driver of a car, you may be involved in an accident. Even the occupants of the car may then be injured, or even killed.

The passenger indemnity insurance then compensates the damage suffered by the occupants (passengers and driver) of the car. If you want to be one hundred percent sure that the occupants in your car will be compensated for their damages under all circumstances, then choose this insurance.

With this insurance, you settle the claim with your own insurer. So you are not dependent on another party's liability insurer.

Coverage:

Coverage is subsidiary/supplementary, i.e., only if damage is not reimbursed by other insurance.

• Property damage:
  When it comes to broken things, this is property damage, and handling this type of damage usually takes little effort.
• Personal injury
  If there are deaths or injuries, then there is personal injury. It is then very important that the damages be handled carefully;
  These may be sensitive situations.
  Also, the damage handling and compensation may take longer.
  How big a victim's damages are, you can usually only properly assess when the victim is (almost) healed.
  The process of settling personal injury claims is often more complex and sensitive than for property damage. That is why rules have been drawn up for this: Code of Conduct for Handling Personal Injury.
  Insurers adhere to this code of conduct when handling personal injury claims.
• In and around the car
  Insurance coverage applies when the occupants are in the car, as well as while getting in and out of the car, or, for example, while performing emergency repairs on the road. The policy conditions state exactly what is covered.
• It does not matter whether the driver or the other occupants are liable for causing the damage.
• Consequential damages
  -damage to clothing and luggage; -medical expenses; -loss of income due to the injury; -a possible temporary help in the household
  - Often the policy also includes compensation.

No coverage:

• Damage to the vehicle itself;
• If the driver does not have a valid driver's license;
• If the driver was under the influence of (too much) alcohol or drugs;
• If participated in a race or other speed drive;
• If a private car was used as a cab

The policy never pays out more than the maximum amount on the policy to multiple occupants combined. This maximum amount is stated in the policy. Usually € 1,000,000.00.

If there are more occupants in the vehicle than are insured, then underinsurance rule is applied = insured number of seats divided by number of occupants times the claim amount.

What is the difference between passenger accident insurance and passenger indemnity insurance?

In addition to passenger accident insurance, you can also purchase passenger accident insurance. Although these two insurances are similar, they are distinct and can be taken out in addition to each other. You can decide which additional insurances may be useful to you.

Passenger accident insurance is more expensive than passenger accident insurance, but has more comprehensive coverage. The maximum amount paid out in the event of a claim is much higher than with passenger accident insurance. Moreover, in addition to personal injury, passenger accident insurance also provides compensation for damage to luggage and clothing.

Take a detailed look at the differences between passenger indemnity insurance and passenger accident insurance here.