When it comes to car insurance, you know what you want – an insurer that will pay out when you claim and one that will send roadside assistance when you need it. Sounds simple right? Except not every insurer was created equal, so you might find you don’t get these basics with just any insurance company.

That’s why it’s a good idea to compare car insurance, so you can be sure you really are finding the best deal from the best insurer. And what better place to start than with us at Dialdirect? We make it our mission to give you the certainty that your Car Insurance with us does exactly what we say it does – cover you and your vehicle.

What do I need to know about my car insurance company?

The number one thing to know about your insurance company is that they want you to be a low-risk driver, and this means that your premiums could be lower. Rather than charging higher premiums to make more money, we at Dialdirect want our customers to stay safe on the road and drive right, which automatically lowers premiums. That’s why we created our Dialdirect Insurance App – to help everyone improve their driving and create safer roads. In fact, we’re so passionate about this, you can get up to 75% of your Comprehensive Car Insurance premiums back in cash every single month just for driving right - depending on the Payback option you have chosen and are paying for.

Here are a few tips to improve your driving and lower your risk based on the factors we use in our app:

• Distance: It’s simple – drive less. You could carpool to work, work from home when you can, or take a shorter route to work.
• Speed: Over and over, speed has been linked to an increase in accidents and their severity. Stick to the speed limit and your driving will probably improve.
• Acceleration: No need to race from one robot to the next – take it easy on the road.
• Braking: Drive like you have a hot, cheesy pizza on the passenger seat. None of that harsh braking that will make that cheese slide right off.
• Cellphone use: There’s no reason to have your cellphone in your hand while driving. If you need to talk on the phone, use your Bluetooth.
• Night-time driving: Risks on the road increase drastically between 10 pm and 5 am, so avoid driving during these hours whenever you can.

Improving your driving with Dialdirect is as simple as it sounds. Download and register on our app to start driving right today.

Is it cheaper to buy insurance online or through an agent?

Whether it’s cheaper to buy insurance online or through an insurance agent depends on a few factors. Usually, buying online is cheaper because you don’t pay a broker fee on top of your monthly premium. However, some brokers can compare car insurance quotes online for you so you don’t have to do it. They can either do this through an insurance comparison site or via email using their contacts at different insurance companies. Sometimes this can lead to a cheaper premium. Sometimes it doesn’t.

Going direct is easy, especially when you can get a Car Insurance quote from start to finish online with Dialdirect. Doing it this way only takes a few minutes and it allows you to make sure all of your details and information are correct, for the most accurate quote. You can even toggle your monthly premium and your excess – raise or lower them to suit your needs and budget – and get quotes for more of our great insurance products, too.

Should I bundle my car insurance with another policy?

The simple answer to this is – definitely. Especially with Dialdirect. By combining your Car, Home Contents, and Buildings Insurance, you could earn up to 75% cash back monthly.

You see, with our Comprehensive Car Cover policy, you can automatically get up to 15% cash back every month just for driving right. Add in Home Contents to your policy and you can get an additional 5%. Add in Buildings Insurance and it’s another 5%, giving you up to 25% cash back in total. Your cash back amount depends on Payback option you have chosen.

Want even more cash back monthly? At a slightly higher premium, you can choose to add Payback Booster to your policy and we upgrade it to a whopping 70%. Finally, for that extra 5%, you just need to complete some basic tasks, like complete a survey and go for an eye test.

What could be the cause of high premiums?

It’s important to understand that when you start to compare car insurance in South Africa, the first thing an insurer will do is assess your level of risk. That’s basically what your insurance premium is – your risk expressed as a monthly amount. The higher your risk, the higher your premium will be. If your car insurance quote comes back more expensive than you thought it would be, there could be a few reasons for it.

There are several factors insurers use to calculate your level of risk. Here are some of the main ones:

• Age: Drivers younger than 25 are considered a higher risk due to their lack of driving experience.
• Gender: Women are seen as safer drivers.
• Relationship status: Statistically, married people tend to be lower risks.
• Car value: The more valuable your vehicle, the higher your premiums will be. Also, cars manufactured in South Africa tend to get lower premiums because parts are easily available, which works out cheaper to repair.
• Car colour: Some colours, like white, are easier to match and apply than others. Pearlescent white, on the other hand, is harder to match correctly and is, therefore, more expensive.
• Car security: Cars with tracking devices are more likely to be recovered if they’re stolen, making them a lower risk to insure. Similarly, where and how you park during the day and at night affect how likely your car is to be stolen. Parking on the street in a high-crime area is going to drive your premium up more than parking behind a locked garage in a boomed-off area will.
• Driving habits: The more careful you are on the road, the less likely you are to be in an accident. When you do car insurance quotes comparison, you’ll be asked how many accidents or claims you’ve had in recent years. The fewer you’ve had, the lower your premium will be. Additionally, the more you drive, the more likely it is you’ll be in an accident.

Which car insurance companies have reduced their premiums due to COVID-19?

The world we live in now is completely different to the one we knew in 2019. With the Coronavirus pandemic, it’s important for insurance companies to step up and help their customers in any way they can. That’s why we recommend you find out if the car insurance quotes you’re comparing come from companies that have offered premium relief.

At Dialdirect, we’ve done this in a few ways to help our individual and business clients not only save money but to make things a little easier in these tough times. Here’s how:

• R19 million in premium relief for our customers. We’ve also helped customers add or remove certain items from their cover that they don’t need right now in order to reduce their premiums.
• Our holding company has donated R320 million in relief funding, split between the National Solidarity Fund, various feeding schemes in our local communities, and small businesses within our supply chain.
• Even though many people have not driven much during the lockdown, we’ve still made it possible for our Comprehensive Car Insurance customers to get their monthly Payback by using their last valid drive score.

Compare Car Insurance with Dialdirect

If you want to compare car insurance quotes in South Africa, start with the only insurer to give you monthly cash back just for driving right.

If you choose Comprehensive, Third-party, Fire, and Theft, or Third-party Only cover, there’s a benefit for you.

• Our Comprehensive Car Insurance customers can get up to 75% cash back every. Single. Month. This depends on the Payback option you have chosen and are paying for.
• All Car Insurance customers get access to our Assist Benefits, which include Roadside and Towing Assist, Medical Assist, Home Assist, Trauma Assist, and Legal Assist, all just a tap away through the Dialdirect Insurance App.
• All customers get 500 MB of free data when they register a profile on our website or via our app and confirm their risk information.
• Even people who aren’t customers can use and benefit from our app. Get scored out of five stars on every trip you take and get tips on how to improve your drive score.

So, no matter what, when you do your thing, you get back ching.

Get a Car Insurance quote online, call us on 0861 00 73 27, or leave your details on our website and we’ll call you back at a date and time that suits you.