Insurance Claims Rejected if Vehicle Rented Without Prior Notification

JAKARTA — Renting out a private vehicle during the Lebaran mudik season can be an opportunity for additional income, as demand for vehicles typically increases sharply, particularly among people who need transport to return to their home villages.

Laurentius Iwan Pranoto, Head of Communication and Customer Service Management at Asuransi Astra, has reminded vehicle owners that any change in vehicle usage must be reported to ensure that coverage remains valid.

“Make sure the usage is appropriate. What does that mean? The usage must match. We registered it for personal use. Then it turns out you want to rent it out,” Iwan told Kompas.com in Jakarta recently.

“When you speak to the insurer, initially it’s for personal use. If you want to rent it out or use it for online services, that must be communicated to the insurance company,” he said.

Iwan explained that insurance policies are fundamentally created based on the type of vehicle usage agreed upon at the outset. Typically, private vehicles are registered for non-commercial use.

When a vehicle is subsequently rented out or used as an operational vehicle such as an online taxi, the usage status changes.

“But once the vehicle is rented out, or we become an online taxi driver for example, that’s a change in usage. That must be reported,” he explained.

For this reason, before deciding to rent out a vehicle during the Lebaran mudik period, vehicle owners should first contact their insurance provider to adjust their policy accordingly. This simple step can prevent significant financial losses later, particularly if something untoward occurs during the mudik journey.