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The Instituto Nacional de Seguros, or INS, is
a state-run insurance company that controls all insurance
in Costa Rica. They will handle all of your insurance needs.
INS has a new English section on their website at http://www.ins-cr.com
or http://www.ins.go.cr.
All insurance is less expensive in Costa Rica than
in the United States. Auto, fire and theft insurance
will cost less than half the U.S. premium. All vehicles
in Costa Rica have Obligatory Insurance or Seguro Obligatorio, which comes
automatically with your vehicle registration. It is
renewed every December when you pay your car's road
tax (marchamo). This insurance gives you a small
amount of personal liability coverage, which is the
type that protects you if you hurt, kill or maim another
person when you are driving your car.
About 65 percent of cars have only the obligatory
insurance which is not really complete coverage. If
you want real coverage you must buy a supplementary
policy. For an additional cost, supplemental insurance
policies provide broader coverage than the basic compulsory
policy. Your car's value determines the price of your
premium. These supplemental policies are paid in full
every six months. They cannot be paid in monthly premiums
as in the United States. Also, as in the States, premiums
are increased when you have an accident. However, these
increases are not as big as in the United States. It
doesn't matter if it was your fault or not.
When considering coverage, remember the general rule
of thumb: Insure against everything you would find
yourself hard-pressed to overcome financially. The
essential coverages are A and C; if you don't get those,
INS won't sell you any of the others. For coverage
F or H, you must also have D. (By the way, coverages
B and G have never existed). Rates are determined by
the vehicle's and applicant's characteristics.
Here is a breakdown of the basic automobile coverages
in Costa Rica:
- (A)
PERSONAL LIABILITY Covers liability established
by the courts as a result of death or injury caused
by an accident for which the driver of your vehicle
was guilty. The benefits are paid once the Obligatory
Insurance is used up and does not cover injury or death
of family members or employees of the policyholder
or driver.
- (C)
PROPERTY DAMAGE Covers damage to property (car,
house, etc.) belonging to other people if the accident
was the fault of the driver of your vehicle. Excludes
items being transported by your vehicle.
- (D)
COLLISION In case of collision with another vehicle,
persons, or property belonging to someone else, this
policy pays for damage sustained by your vehicle: (a)
if the accident was not the fault of your driver, or
(b) if the accident was not the fault of your driver
but the other vehicle has no insurance and the owner
cannot pay.
- (E)
FIRE Covers damage to your vehicle caused by
fire due to either internal factors such as short circuit,
or to external factors such as lightning, or if the
place where the vehicle is parked burns.
- (F)
THEFT Covers total theft of the vehicle or loss
derived from the total theft. If it is not recovered,
policy pays for damage and/or missing parts. If not
recovered within a month, the insured amount is paid
or the vehicle is replaced.
- (H)
ADDITIONAL RISKS Covers damage resulting from
overturning, running off the road, vandalism, floods,
hurricanes, quakes, explosions, collisions with birds,
falling objects, accidents within parking lots or private
property, riots, etc.
Other Considerations
Insured values Cars should be insured at their
market value in Costa Rica, and it is up to the policy
applicant to determine it. To determine values of vehicles,
it is sometimes best to use the newspaper classified
ads. Only you can change the value on your policy;
INS will not automatically reduce the insured values
on vehicles as they depreciate.
Renewals Auto insurance is normally for six
months, after which you have a grace period of 10 working
days to pay for renewal. After that, you would have
to apply for new insurance or reinstatement.
Coverage outside of Costa Rica For cars with
Costa Rican registration, coverage extends to all of
Central America and Panama.
Deductibles All coverages except A”have
standard deductibles. A”has no deductible. Double
deductible if the driver is under 22, in cases of vandalism,
birds or accidents on private property.
Alcohol Policies will not pay for accidents
to vehicles being driven by people under the influence
of alcohol or drugs, even if the condition did not
cause the accident. An alcohol count of 50 mg or more
in 100 cc of blood will invalidate insurance coverage,
except for liability coverages A and C.
Roadside Assistance This comes free for vehicles less
than 15 years old that have coverage D. Call 800-800-7000(toll-free)
if you have a flat tire, dead battery, are out of gas, or
need a tow truck.
Special Notes for Tourists When you bring a car
into Costa Rica, you will be given a permit to drive
the car into the country. The permit is usually for
three months, renewable once. For issuance of the permit
you must state who is going to drive the car they
allow the owner and one other person, usually one's
spouse. If you don't have Costa Rican plates on your
automobile, you can't cover it against collision or
theft. All other coverages are available under these
circumstances. However, in most cases, after 180 days
you can get Costa Rican plates when you pay the corresponding
taxes on your vehicle.
(I) HOMEOWNERS INSURANCE A homeowners insurance policy
is called Hogar Comprensivo in Spanish. It protects
your home against fire and natural disaster. The home fire
policy has four subcoverages: A is for fire and lightening;
Bcovers damage caused by strikes, vandalism, hurricane, cyclone,
explosion, smoke, falling objects and vehicles; C pays for
damage caused by floods and landslides; D covers natural disasters:
earthquakes, tremors, volcanoes, etc. You can take coverage
A by itself, A+B, A+CD or complete coverage A+B+CD. Rates
are based on a percentage of the value of the building and
include a 13 percent tax and an inflationary factory whereby
there is a small yearly increase. Depreciation is also factored
in at a rate of one to two percent yearly.
If you have one of these policies you will have to
insure your house's contents as well as the house itself.
You will have to submit a complete list of household
effects with the value of each item, and the respective
brand name, model and serial numbers. If you want to
insure the contents of your home, you must put a value
on the objects based on depreciated value. The same
rate for the house applies to the contents. You should
have your house appraised so you can carry enough coverage.
Some people doubt whether INS would be able to settle
claims from a major earthquake or hurricane. INS is
by far the largest insurance company in Central America.
In fact, INS is one of the largest insurance companies
in Latin America, is financially solid and most importantly,
it re-insures worldwide a large percentage of the risk.
We have already mentioned the affordability of medical insurance
in Costa Rica in the section titled Medical Care. Because
not everyone's insurance needs are the same and because laws
and coverages work differently in Costa Rica, we suggest you
consult your attorney or the English-speaking insurance agent,
Dave Garrett, we have listed below.
Garrett y Asociados
SJO 450, Miami, FL 33102-5216;
Tel: 233-2455 Fax:
222-0007
E-mail: info@segurosgarrett.com -
http://www.segurosgarrett.com
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