Can you add a friend to your motor policy in Hong Kong?

First and foremost, it is entirely possibly to add other drivers onto your existing policy. But, like many other types of insurance, there are limitations and important requirements you should be aware of.

In our experience, it is a relatively painless process to add another driver to your motor insurance policy in Hong Kong, and can usually be done quickly and easily. If you have secured your motor policy through Kwiksure, we can help guide you through the process and have another driver-approved within a couple of business days.

If you would like to add another driver to your policy, there are a number of common requirements that you will need to meet before you are able to do so. The four most common being:

• The driver needs to have two years experience - What we mean by this is that the driver you would like to add to your policy needs to have been driving for at least two years, or at the very least needs to have had a valid license for two years.
• The driver needs to be over 18 or 25 years old - This requirement may be different for each insurer, but most plans require extra drivers on insurance policies to be over 25 years old, as this is the age where drivers are no longer considered to be young drivers. At the very least, the minimum age will be 18, which is the legal age at which you can drive in Hong Kong.  
• The driver needs to have a valid license - There are two components that make up this requirement. First, the license needs to be not expired, or not set to expire during the insurance period. Secondly. The license needs to be either issued in Hong Kong, or issued by a country that is recognized by the Transport Department. If the driver you are adding to your policy is not licensed in a country on this list, they may not be able to be added to your policy.  
• The driver needs to not have submitted a claim within the past five years - In Kwiksure's experience, this is on a worldwide basis, meaning that you can not have submitted a claim for a car accident in the past five years.

It is important to note here that while these are common requirements, insurers will often consider applications for extra drivers on a case-by-case basis. For example, if you want to add to your policy a driver who is under 25, but who has been driving for more than two years,  your insurer will more than likely allow them to be added.

In Hong Kong, most motor insurance policies allow a maximum of four drivers to be added under one policy. The main driver takes up one spot, so you can usually add up to three extra drivers. With most plans, there is no fee for the second driver, but there will be a charge for the third and fourth drivers.

This charge will vary by insurer, but it is common for the third driver to be charged 10% of the premium, and the fourth driver will be charged 20% of the premium.

On the subject of charges: We have also seen insurers allow drivers with less than two years experience and who are under 25 to be added to the plan. If the driver meets Hong Kong's legal driving laws (over the age of 18) then you will likely be able to add them to your plan. The issue here is that you will likely have to pay an increased premium, as the driver will be deemed to be inexperienced or young. This can be as much as 40% on top of the original premium.

Beyond that, some insurers will charge an administration fee for the addition of drivers. This fee is usually under HKD$500, and could vary depending on the insurer.

Kwiksure recommends that any drivers being added to a plan review Hong Kong's road rules. For example, if the person you are adding to your policy is from Canada or the US, where road rules are different and cars drive on the other side of the road, there is a higher chance of the driver getting into an accident, as they will be unfamiliar with the road rules in the city.

To learn more about car insurance in Hong Kong, visit our website today.