What is the difference between CASCO and OSAGO in 2021: the meaning of the terms

What is better in case of an accident: OSAGO or Casco?

If we omit all the subtleties and risks, then definitely Casco. Because in this case:

• you will have to collect much fewer documents specifically for applying for Casco,
• in many accidents, the waiting time for the necessary papers under compulsory motor liability insurance can be up to a year (if the incident involved victims),
• the payment limit is much higher for voluntary insurance policies,
• companies are more loyal to customers and are less likely to underestimate payments.

But don’t rush to write a statement. After all, the actual benefit depends on many factors. Let's find them all out!

Basic terms

To understand the essence of each type of insurance, you need to start by deciphering the terminology:

• CASCO is a voluntary type of insurance for ground transport;
• OSAGO – compulsory civil liability insurance for vehicle owners.

Where should I go if I caused an accident?

If the decision was made only against you in an accident, then the question of which is more profitable, Casco or OSAGO, is acute only because of ignorance of the basic principles of car insurance and right now will disappear by itself.

Since OSAGO insures the driver’s liability, and not property, you do not even have the right to apply for OSAGO. The victim in this insured event will receive payment from your insurance company. And your option is exclusively Casco, since this particular insurance does not depend on whether you are the culprit in this incident or the victim.

When insurance doesn't help

No matter how much CASCO and OSAGO differ from each other, there are still common points in these types of insurance. When concluding a contract, it is important to carefully read the clause called: “Exclusions from insurance coverage.”

So, the insurer has the right to refuse payment if:

1. The vehicle was driven by a person not included in the insurance;
2. The driver was driving under the influence of alcohol, drugs or toxic substances;
3. There are no documents confirming the occurrence of an insured event;
4. The victim refuses to provide the car for inspection after the insured event;
5. The vehicle was damaged as a result of military operations, civil unrest or natural disasters.

In general, there are not many exceptions. And if you study them when signing the contract, there will be no unpleasant surprises in the future.

When is the best time to apply for Casco?

So, we found out above that if you were found to be at fault as a result of an accident, then you can only apply for Casco. In this case, compulsory motor liability insurance works only as insurance for your liability - the insurance compensates for the damage caused to you.

But if you are recognized as the injured party in this insured event, and you have both MTPL and Casco insurance policies, then the choice of where to go is yours. But it is important to learn how to make the right choice after an accident in 2021.

So, the option of voluntary insurance is more profitable in the following cases:

• you have been insured under Casco for the last year (for example, if the car is on credit, and you buy a policy only because the creditor bank obliges you to do so),
• your car is more than 2-4 years old, and you don’t want red tape with the person at fault for the accident and collecting the difference in wear and tear from him,
• you want to collect as few documents as possible,
• you want to wait as little as possible,
• you do not want to contact the at-fault party's insurance company,
• you want to be referred for repairs under Casco only to an official dealer (if the contract provides only for such),
• you are only satisfied with the payment in money, and your Casco insurance will pay you, and not send the car for repairs,
• in an accident, both (or more) participants were found to be partially at fault (mutual fault), and compulsory motor liability insurance will not cover 100 percent of the compensation,
• you have paid money and simply want to exercise your right to take advantage of property auto insurance.

What is the difference in the cost of OSAGO and CASCO

Different types of insurance have different costs.

Since OSAGO is compulsory and state-regulated insurance, its cost is the same for all insurance companies in the country. For each car owner, it is calculated individually, of course, but the conditions and tariffs are standard.

The cost of compulsory motor liability insurance is influenced by the following indicators:

• type, model and make of the vehicle: passenger car or truck;.
• car power;
• who is the owner: an individual or a legal entity;
• age and driving experience of the car owner and other people who have the right to drive it: the more experienced the driver, the more carefully he drives and the less risk of accidents due to his fault;
• the region of residence of the car owner and, accordingly, the place where they are going to use the car: in each region, the law sets its own tariff for such a policy;
• insurance history: the number and general presence of insured events in past periods;
• the period for which the policy is issued.

All these indicators individually and together may entitle the vehicle owner to a discount or a cost-increasing factor. For example, if there are no insured events over the last year, a 5% discount is given. True, it won’t be there if you change your car.

With CASCO everything is much more complicated.

First of all, because the price for this product is not regulated by the state and insurance companies set the price themselves. It depends both on the policy of the insurance company and on the selected range of insured events and conditions under the contract.

The cost of a CASCO policy varies depending on the following factors:

• form of ownership of the vehicle;
• city ​​of vehicle registration;
• driving experience and age of the car owner;
• availability of installed security equipment;
• type, type and capacity of transport;
• the period for which the policy is issued;
• age of the car.

All these points affect not only the price, but also the possibility of obtaining CASCO insurance. The insurance company may refuse to sell the policy if, for example, the insured vehicle is very old.

When is OSAGO more profitable?

In turn, it is better to prefer applying for compulsory motor liability insurance in the following situations:

• you are a victim of an accident and understand that if you apply for Casco, the price will rise next year, but compulsory motor liability insurance will not,
• you want to receive payment instead of repairs, and in some cases, under compulsory motor liability insurance, this is how compensation for damage occurs, in turn, under the Casco agreement, only repairs are clearly stated for you,
• you have entered into a voluntary insurance agreement with a deductible, and do not want to partially pay out of your own pocket,
• you have drawn up a European protocol, and your contract does not provide for such registration of an insured event,
• your car is less than 2 years old, and under compulsory motor liability insurance you are legally required to be sent to a dealer for repairs, while under property insurance, you are required to be sent to any car service center.

Road accident

If the driver is at fault in an accident, then the MTPL policy is always used. Thanks to this agreement, victims will receive compensation. But to repair the car of the culprit, CASCO is already required.

If the policyholder is a victim, then it is important to consider:

• Does the culprit have compulsory motor liability insurance? In the absence of a policy, the matter may drag on;
• what is the magnitude of the damage, will the compulsory type of insurance coverage cover it;
• Features of the conditions of voluntary car insurance.

Applying for payments under an insurance contract increases its cost during renewal. This means that in case of minor damage, it is more profitable for the victim to apply for compensation under OSAGO. Then this insurance will become more expensive for the culprit, but for the victim, insurance costs in the next period will not increase.

So what should you choose?

So, let's take a closer look at all these subtleties and find out why and under what circumstances repairs or payment of Casco are more profitable and better than under compulsory motor liability insurance.

Increase in insurance prices for next year

This is the most important factor in the choice. The fact is that both types of insurance become more expensive the next year if there are insured events:

• if you applied for Casco in the current year, then next year an increased coefficient will be applied to you,
• the same thing with compulsory motor liability insurance, but, unlike Casco, here only an accident in which you are at fault is recognized as an insured event that increases the cost of insurance.

Thus, perhaps the main criterion for choosing – OSAGO or Casco, is the rise in price of the policy for the next year. But not all insurance companies increase the cost of voluntary insurance.

Conclusion : in many cases, applying under compulsory motor liability insurance rather than under Casco is better for the victim in terms of increasing the cost of insurance for the next year.

What if next year I take insurance from another company?

This is also the best option. But, again, not all companies will suit you. The fact is that many Casco insurers, as of 2021, offer discounts for breaking even in the first organization and, conversely, also increase the cost of the policy if insured events have been reported.

But your current insurer may not increase the price if, for example, you were not to blame for the accident (many companies have this condition), but other organizations simply will not look at this fact.

Conclusion : applying for Casco does not always lead to an increase in the cost of insurance, but manipulations with “running around” between companies can lead to this.

Depreciation calculation

This is rare in Casco contracts. But according to OSAGO, the calculation of compensation is always calculated taking into account wear and tear, which depends on the age of the car and can reach up to 50% for cars older than 5 years.

And, if in the case of sending for repairs, according to the law, you should not care about wear and tear (after all, it is forbidden to install used spare parts), then when you pay, you will receive less. And let’s be honest, very often, even when sent for repairs under compulsory motor liability insurance, you have to face the requirement of additional payment from a car service for new spare parts.

But the difference between what the insurance company calculated without wear and tear and what it paid taking it into account can be recovered directly from the person at fault for the accident. This is what the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation ruled.

Conclusion : if your car is older than 2-4 years, and you don’t want unnecessary hassles to collect wear and tear or disputes with the insurer and service station, then Casco is better than OSAGO.

Documents for insurance and waiting for payment

OSAGO has a whole set of them:

• your passport, insurance policy, car ownership documents,
• statement,
• accident notification,
• a ruling on the guilt of the second participant or a ruling.

Please note that you can wait up to a year for the latest documents from the traffic police if the accident occurred with injuries or deaths.

In turn, the set of documents for applying under Casco is regulated not by law, but by agreement. But, as a rule, the set of documents is smaller. In addition, you can often apply for Casco without any documents at all, but the amount of compensation or the number of damaged items repaired in this case may be limited.

Conclusion : it is better to apply under Casco than under MTPL if you want to wait less time and collect fewer documents (but not always).

I don't want to contact the insurance company at fault

But under compulsory motor liability insurance you can also contact your insurance... Subject to 2 conditions:

• Only cars were damaged from road accidents.
• both have valid MTPL policies.

The conclusion is obvious.

I want a payment, not a repair

For several years now, compensation under compulsory motor liability insurance has been made in kind - that is, first of all, you are required to issue a referral for repairs. Not the choice of the insurance company, as many believe, but repair as a priority if all the conditions for this are met. But what are these conditions and how to get paid?

Under compulsory motor liability insurance, payment in lieu of repairs can be received in cases where:

• you indicated this desire in your application for compensation in case of an accident, and the insurer agreed (but most often they refuse),
• the nearest service station with which the insurer has an agreement is further than 50 km from the accident site or your address of residence, and transportation is not profitable for the insurance company,
• there are no suitable service stations with which the company has an agreement (including dealers, if your car is less than 2 years old),
• when applying under OSAGO they recognized the total loss of the car, while under Casco they offer repairs,
• if the victim died during an accident (and you receive compensation for him as a relative),
• damage according to insurance calculations exceeds 400,000 rubles,
• you have received moderate or severe injuries, or are disabled, and have chosen payment in your application.

All these points, according to the 2021 OSAGO law, require the insurer to make only payments.

Conclusion : if you want to receive a payment and fall under one of the conditions described above, then it is better to apply under MTPL than under Casco... All this if your Casco agreement only provides for repairs.

I only want to go to an official dealer

Here, too, in the case of Casco, everything depends only on the contract - the list of service centers for repairs should appear in it.

Repair under OSAGO is only possible at a dealer if your car is not older than 2 years.

Conclusion : it is better to apply for MTPL if your car is less than 2 years old.

With mutual guilt

Since Casco insures your property, and OSAGO insures liability in the event of guilt, if all participants in an accident are recognized as culprits, Casco is more profitable. Why?

The point here is that if it is, for example, 50/50 fault, you will receive only 50% of the calculated amount of compensation under the auto insurance policy, because you are partly at fault. And for the Casco agreement, the degree of your guilt in terms of compensation does not matter at all. But please note, again, that the policy in this case may become more expensive for the next year of insurance.

Conclusion : if the fault is mutual, then you need to understand that Casco is better than compulsory motor liability insurance after such an accident.

Franchise

Look carefully at your agreement - often many car enthusiasts do not even suspect that they have entered into it with a franchise.

In our case, it means that the insurance company does not cover a certain fixed amount of damages.

Let's take another example. You were recognized as a victim in an accident, and the amount of damage to you was calculated at 50,000 rubles. At the same time, the deductible under your Casco insurance contract is 30,000 rubles. In this case, the company will reimburse you only 20,000 rubles for this insurance event under Casco. But according to compulsory motor liability insurance there must be a full amount - there are no franchises in compulsory motor liability insurance.

Conclusion : if your Casco agreement implies a franchise, then OSAGO is more profitable.

Motor insurance

Motor insurance is often called a combined CASCO + OSAGO package. Often both policies are issued by the same insurance company.

OSAGO policy

This dilemma arises

The MTPL insurance contract has the following features:

• it is public, which obliges insurance companies to provide insurance policies to all persons interested in purchasing insurance.
• Every car owner is required by law to take out an auto liability policy.
• An uninsured vehicle is prohibited from being operated on the roads. The maximum permissible period for concluding an agreement with the insurer is 10 days from the date of receipt of the car into ownership

CASCO policy

The voluntary insurance contract reflects the following information:

• information about the car owner, as well as about the beneficiary and policyholder, if any. Plus information about drivers allowed to drive.
• Complete data regarding the vehicle and its identifying marks, such as ID.
• Regions of coverage of the policy. In some cases, agreements cover not only the Russian Federation, but also neighboring countries, such as the CIS countries.
• List of insured events that the policy insures against.
• The maximum sum insured and restrictions on payments in certain situations.
• Contract time.

Two policies - different protection

Many car owners who are thinking about purchasing insurance for the first time after buying a car want to decide what would be better - to issue compulsory motor insurance without CASCO or vice versa?

The answer to this question in most insurance companies is provided in the form of CASCO insurance programs, which are specially selected to complement the MTPL policy. And all those risks that are not available with compulsory motor vehicle insurance can be prevented with the help of a CASCO policy.

For example, OSAGO helps compensate the injured party for damage, and CASCO allows you to insure a car against theft, breakdown or theft.

A selection for you!

Download forms and sample documents for motorists to a safe place.

Which type of car insurance is cheaper?

The second important issue is the cost of car insurance. OSAGO or CASCO – which is cheaper? We have to disappoint you - it will be cheaper to pay for the damage caused to another person than to compensate for the damage caused to your own vehicle.

Tariffs for compulsory motor liability insurance are regulated by the state - in all insurance companies the conditions for purchasing compulsory motor liability insurance are the same, and a motor vehicle license in different insurance companies will cost the same amount. Insurance operators set the cost of CASCO themselves, and it depends on many factors - from the statistics of thefts of a given car model to the level of competence of the driver.

Registration of policies

To apply for a CASCO policy, you must complete the following steps:

• provision of the object itself for pre-insurance inspection.
  This is necessary for a general assessment of the condition of the car, identifying damage and the degree of wear. The only exceptions are completely new vehicles that left the factory and were purchased from an official dealer or a car dealership.
• Preparation of all necessary documentation, the list of which can be clarified with the insurance company.
• Receiving the policy after completing the entire procedure. At this point, it is necessary to check all the data specified in the document, and also request a receipt for payment of the policy.

Purchasing an MTPL policy requires the car owner to provide the following information:

• technical information about the car, including its power, make, age, etc.
• Information about the owner of the vehicle and all persons who are allowed to drive the vehicle. They will be included in the contract in the future, and this will eliminate problems when checking documents if the driver is not the owner of the car.

An insurance company employee looks for information about a car in various databases, especially for used vehicles. For example, to check the presence or absence of a criminal history of a vehicle.