The Singapore car insurance market appears quite convoluted and opaque to many. There are a lot of Singapore Car Insurance hidden secrets. Here is our take. The market leaders are NTUC Car Insurance (also known as NTUC Income car Insurance) and AIG Car Insurance. These firms have a particularly strong hold on the new car market. They have arrangements with car dealers who they pay extremely high commissions to bring in their new customers. These are usually exclusive arrangements that make it difficult for anyone else to compete in the new car market. Even MSIG Car insurance, Tokio Marine Car Insurance and China Taiping Insurance cannot compete here. Instead they are forced into niches and focus on certain segments of the used car market, such as certain personality or ownership profiles, such as safe drivers or even “dangerous drivers” (at higher premiums or excess).
When you buy your new car, Singapore car insurance is typically included in the sale by the dealer and you are guaranteed you pay a lot for your insurance to pay for the commissions. Some car dealers go as far as not even accepting you not buying insurance from them and will charge you a penalty for not buying insurance there and then.
Some new players in the market like Direct Asia car insurance have tried to challenge this for quite a few years, but vested interests have proven too resilient for them. We heard FWD car insurance have their own way; They try to emulate the current practices of the top 2 by also offering high commissions to car dealers, but have not really made inroads yet as many dealers (new and second hand) don’t trust them given their aggressive marketing practices.
In most places of the developed world these tied sales practices would be frowned upon and in some it would even be illegal. Not in Singapore. Consumer protection here seems outweighed by the interests of car merchants. The regulatory authorities are even accommodative by having special intermediary licenses in place for car dealers. We must presume that they are satisfied that car dealers will act in the interest of clients when it comes to insurance.
How to Cut Through the Singapore Car Insurance Noise
As regulated insurance brokers, at Insurance Market we take insurance serious and are of the view that insurance needs are different for everyone, depending on personal and financial circumstances. That is why it is always good to analyse and compare. Not just price, but also coverage, terms and conditions and service. We help to cut through the confusing messages that insurance companies tend to throw at you like “life time no claim” and others and e help when our clients put in their car insurance claim and make sure they are dealt with fairly.
These tied sales practices also prevail in the second hand car market albeit that this market is less dominated by NTUC Car Insurance (also known as NTUC Income car Insurance) and AIG Car Insurance. However similar “exclusive and mandatory” practices tend to be in place.
Next time you get your dealer’s NTUC car insurance quote or see an attractive Budget Direct car insurance quote, check out our providers as well.
On our site you will find MSIG Car insurance, Sompo Car Insurance, HL Car insurance, Etiqa Car Insurance and we hope to be adding Axa car Insurance soon as well. Go check it out and use the free 5% insurance promo code upon registering at our site. Direct writers such as FWD and Budget Direct do not value our added service and prefer to work with you directly. You can do so (at your own peril) of course, but when paying a thousand dollars or more for a policy you may possible want to consider paying a few dollars more to get the right policy and the support that you will need when trouble crosses your path. There is an almost 100% probability that at some some point it will. Let us help you find the best car insurance in Singapore.
Responsible Singapore Car Insurance (and Other Insurances)
Insurance Market is the only online insurance broker that exclusively deals with insurance and is not a lead generator that pretends to be a specialist, while also dealing in credit cards, loans or other financial products that they can earn a commission on. Insurance Market is a market place where we are serious about insurance and where professional parties come together to transact insurance only in the best and most responsible manner. Insurance Market offers a wide range of general insurance products (such as travel insurance, maid insurance, pet insurance and more) online and life insurance through personal advice from our qualified brokers. Singapore Car Insurance may be competitive and sometimes convoluted, but we are here to help you make sense of it and get the policy that best suits your needs.
