Budget Insurance Limited review 2024

Budget Insurance Limited is an insurance company that deals with short-term insurance. The company is headquartered in Dainfern, Gauteng South Africa having support offices across South Africa’s 9 provinces. The company is owned by Telesure Investment Holdings. Telesure owns 1lifedirect, 1st for women, Dial Direct, hippo and Auto & General. Budget Insurance offers insurance packages that are competitive hence using the word ‘budget’. Products include car, home, business, contents, funeral and portables insurance.

Products offered by Budget Insurance

Car insurance

Comprehensive car insurance: This is a full package car insurance that covers your car over theft, loss and damage. It also covers third-party damage, towing and storage costs should you get involved in an accident.

Third-party, fire and theft car insurance: unlike comprehensive car insurance, this insurance cover is for third-party damages, fire and theft. Your car is covered should it get stolen or get damaged in a fire. It also covers for third-party damage.

Third-party only car insurance: This car insurance from Budget protects you financially should you get into an accident. Budget Insurance covers the cost of any third-parties when you get into an accident or when your car gets damaged by a third-party.

BetterCar value: This car insurance option is similar to comprehensive car insurance, however, should your car get written-off in an accident, you will receive a payout for a better car, which is the same car model but with fewer kilometres.

Bikes Insurance

This insurance is for motorbike owners. With the Budget insurance motorbike insurance, you get cover for theft, accidental damage and third-party damage. Budget insurance also covers the cost of any standard accessories and pays out when a bike is stolen with standard accessories. Should you have more expensive accessories you will need to specify them so that Budget can cover them.

There are other standard benefits that come with Budget insurance comprehensive cover. Benefits from Budget comprehensive insurance include roadside assistance, medical assistance and legal assistance.

Roadside Assistance: You get roadside assistance with 24-hour towing services countrywide. Budget sends someone to help you if you need assistance with flat tyres. Another roadside assistance service is the empty petrol tank assistance should you run out of fuel.

Medical Assist: You get 24-hour medical emergency assistance whether you are at home or on the road.

Legal Assist: You get legal assistance such as drawing up legal documents and courtroom preparation. There is also telephonic legal assistance and tax advice from qualified professionals that can be utilized.

Comprehensive 4×4 Vehicle Insurance

This is comprehensive off-road car insurance from Budget Insurance. The cover is for your off-road vehicle. It covers for theft, accidental damage and third-party damages. Budget Insurance allows covering for some few extra accessories that come with the vehicle. Your comprehensive 4×4 insurance covers your vehicle across the borders of South Africa.

Budget Insurance will insure your car when you use it in Kenya, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

4×4 insurance benefits includes:

• cover of up to R10 000 for standard accessories (excluding sound system) fitted to the vehicle
• reprogramming of the anti-theft system, and cover for the vehicle’s keys, if they are lost or damaged
• cover for the spare wheel, if stolen with the vehicle
• cover whilst driving in Tanzania, Angola, and Zambia, as well as the other geographical limits
• the option to increase your Third Party Liability Cover to R5 million, R10 million, or R20 million
• cover for the vehicle’s factory fitted cellphone car kit
• cover for your windscreen

Personal Accident

This insurance policy covers you for death, disability or hospitalisation as a result of an accident. The payout is made to your family should you get involved in an accident.

The payout amount is tax-free in the event of death or disability. Cover includes non-medical expenses as a result of hospitalisation and last up to 104 days.

Home Contents

This insurance is for those possessions that are movable in your house. These include television set, DStv decoder and other assets.

Home contents insurance cover against:

• Theft of your guests’, and your domestic employees’ possessions including stolen garden furniture and washing.
  
• Loss and damage to the valuables in your home caused by a break-in, theft, malicious damage, overflowing geysers, and a range of natural occurrences like fires, lightning, storms, and power surges.
  
• If load-shedding strikes and the food in your fridge and freezer deteriorates, Home Contents Insurance will cover it.
  
• Rent to live somewhere else if you can’t stay in your home because of damage caused by something the insurance covers.
  
• Homeowner’s or tenant’s liability, depending on whether you own or rent your home
  
• Veterinary bills for your pets suffer from an injury in a road accident.

Building Insurance

This insurance is for your home since is one of the most valuable assets you own. Budget insurance covers your home from loss or damage caused by fire, floods, storms, falling trees and earthquakes. This comprehensive building insurance extends to other structures on your property, not just the main house. Aside from the main house your swimming pool, cottage, tennis court, walls and permanent fittings are covered.

Budget Business Insurance

Since businesses have different needs, Budget Insurance provides different types of businesses with insurance. Businesses that can insure with Budget includes professional, tradesman, medical, general, and B&B businesses. There are many insurance types for businesses from Budget Insurance. A business can take insurance for their money, motor vehicles, buildings, machinery, equipment, office supplies and inventory.

Budget Funeral plan

Budget Insurance Funeral Plan covers funeral expenses. You can include your spouse and children in one funeral plan at a low rate. Budget insurance also pays out should anyone covered die of HIV/AIDS-related illnesses. Should the main member die of an accident, Budget insurance will pay double the amount of a cover.

Budget Legal Cover

This covers legal issues that you may have in your personal life. From your work-related issues to your household issues, Budget insurance will give you legal advice.

You get assistance with:

• Criminal and Labour matters
• Mediation in civil and family matters
• Drafting of wills and contracts of sale
• Assistance with matters of identity theft
• Advice on any private or Labour matters

Conclusion

Budget Insurance has been providing affordable insurance to South Africans since 1998. With the help of Telesure, the company has managed to grow significantly with aggressive marketing on media and Hippo. Budget Insurance has managed to get its fair share of the market regardless of the stiff competition from companies like Santam. Should the company keep on providing affordable insurance and if it keeps up with marketing trends, its reach to maturity will be inevitable.