As Stephon Wells watched workers from the Port-of-Spain City Corporation pull out his car from the St Ann’s River on Wednesday, he knew that it was a loss he had to bear.
“It hurts, you work hard for so many years to get something and it destroyed in a few minutes,” he said.
His car was one of two fished out the river on Wednesday, after they were washed into the waterway during flooding on Tuesday.
He was particularly stressed because he had a third-party insurance policy which only offers protection against damage to the third-party by the insured vehicle. This is someone other than the two parties involved in the contract.
So this meant Wells would not get compensation from his insurance company for the destruction of his car.
It’s for this reason insurance agents advise car owners to get fully comprehensive insurance policies.
“A lot of people look at price, I always say look at benefits,” one agent, who did not wish to be named, yesterday told Guardian Media.
This policy usually pays out if you damage your car, someone else’s car or injure someone in an accident, regardless of who is at fault.
The agent said while third party insurance is cheaper, footing the bill for incidents like Wednesday may cost more.
“If you could pay a lil extra, do the wavier of excess,“ he said.
He explained that it is an optional insurance benefit that protects you against any excess charges you may incur in the event your car is damaged or stolen.
He noted that vehicles older than ten years may not qualify for fully comprehensive coverage, which usually covers theft, fire and flooding.
The agent said the client should also ask their insurer about the special perils policy, which usually covers any damage from acts of God such as hurricanes, earthquakes, or even a landslide.
“Let’s say you shut down in the flood and there is water damage that caused damage to the electrical in the vehicle, you will have to do a claim, they will work out the figures and pay,” he explained.
But another agent said what happened on Tuesday was not an act of God but just flooding, which is covered by most insurance companies.
“That’s a flood, it wasn’t a storm,” he said.
