General Insurance

General Insurance in Kenya Every class of non-life cover, explained

General insurance is everything that is not life assurance — motor, property, liability, marine, engineering and employee cover. Here is what each class does, which ones Kenyan law requires, and how to arrange them without paying twice.

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category All Non-Life Classes

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General insurance is the whole of insurance that is not life assurance. It is sometimes called non-life or short-term insurance, because policies typically run for twelve months and are renewed. If you are insuring a thing, a liability or an interruption to trading rather than a life, you are buying general insurance.

The term covers a wide set of products, and most Kenyan businesses end up holding several of them at once. Understanding the classes makes it easier to see what you are already carrying and where the gaps are.

The main classes in Kenya

Motor

Third party cover is compulsory for every vehicle on a Kenyan road. Comprehensive adds damage to your own vehicle, theft and fire. Commercial fleets, PSVs and motorcycles are rated separately from private cars.

Fire and property

Buildings, contents, stock and equipment against fire, flood, burglary and allied perils, with business interruption covering the profit lost while you are unable to trade.

Liability

Public liability — injury to members of the public or damage to their property arising from your operations.
Product liability — harm caused by something you made, sold or supplied.
Professional indemnity — claims arising from advice or professional services. Required for many consultants, engineers, architects, brokers and medical practitioners.
Directors and officers — personal liability of the board for decisions taken in office.

Employee cover

Employers in Kenya must insure their liability to staff for work-related injury and disease under the Work Injury Benefits Act (WIBA). Group personal accident and group medical are commonly added alongside it as benefits rather than statutory requirements.

Marine and goods in transit

Marine cargo covers goods moving by sea or air, and goods in transit covers movement by road within the country. Importers should note that Kenyan law requires marine cargo insurance on imports to be placed with a locally licensed insurer.

Engineering

Contractors all risks for works under construction, erection all risks for plant installation, machinery breakdown, electronic equipment and boiler cover.

Money, fidelity and crime

Money covers cash in transit and in the safe. Fidelity guarantee covers loss caused by dishonest employees — a common and under-bought cover for businesses handling cash or stock.

How general insurance is arranged

Small businesses are often served well by a packaged policy that bundles fire, burglary, money, fidelity, public liability and WIBA into a single contract at a single renewal date. Larger or more specialised operations are better served by separate policies per class, so that limits and wordings can be set to the actual exposure rather than to a package default.

Either way the significant decisions are the same: the sums insured, the liability limits, the excesses you agree to carry, and the exclusions you accept. Premium is the last of these to look at, not the first.

What OPIB does for you

Maps your exposures against the classes above and tells you plainly which cover you do not need.
Places each class with IRA-licensed insurers and negotiates terms across the whole programme rather than policy by policy.
Aligns renewal dates so your cover is reviewed together instead of piecemeal through the year.
Checks limits and wordings against your contracts, tenders and lease obligations.
Runs the claim with the insurer and the loss adjuster when something goes wrong.

Key points

check_circleGeneral insurance is all non-life cover, normally written for twelve months at a time.
check_circleThird party motor and WIBA employer liability are required by Kenyan law.
check_circleMarine cargo on imports must be placed with a locally licensed insurer.
check_circleFidelity guarantee and business interruption are the most commonly missed covers.
check_circleAligning renewal dates lets the whole programme be reviewed and marketed at once.

Common Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between general insurance and life insurance? add

General insurance covers property, liability and financial loss, and is normally written for twelve months at a time. Life assurance covers a human life over a long term, often decades. They are regulated and priced differently, and in Kenya an insurer is usually licensed for one or the other rather than both.

Which general insurance is compulsory in Kenya? add

Two things are required by law: third party motor insurance for any vehicle used on a public road, and employer liability for work-related injury under the Work Injury Benefits Act (WIBA). Marine cargo insurance on imports must also be placed with a locally licensed insurer. Other covers are contractual or voluntary.

What does a business package policy include? add

Typically fire and perils on buildings, contents and stock, burglary, money, fidelity guarantee, public liability and WIBA, combined into one contract with one renewal date. It suits smaller businesses. Larger operations usually do better with separate policies so limits can be set to real exposure.

What is professional indemnity and do I need it? add

It covers claims arising from your professional advice or services, including negligence and errors. It is required for many regulated professions in Kenya, including engineers, architects, medical practitioners, accountants and insurance brokers, and is increasingly demanded as a condition of consultancy contracts.

How is the premium for general insurance worked out? add

By the insurer, from the sum insured or liability limit, the nature of the risk, your claims history, and the excess you agree to carry. Because insurers rate the same risk differently, comparing across the market is usually worth more than negotiating with one insurer.

Can I put all my business covers on one renewal date? add

Yes, and it is worth doing. Aligning renewals lets the whole programme be reviewed and marketed at once, usually improves terms, and stops cover lapsing because a single policy was missed. We arrange short-period policies to bring dates into line.

Not sure which covers your business needs?

Tell us what you do and we will map your exposures against the classes above, then place only the cover that earns its premium.

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