The Spanish insurance sector in a nutshell

Compared to other countries

No matter where you move there will always be smaller differences on several issues. Among these could be how big your plate of food is, how punctual an appointment is and how legal and financial matters are handled.
In the insurance sector there will also be covers that a large proportion of families has in Germany, where’s in Spain the same cover is not offered.
Either because of climate differences or the because of the desire from the insured.
The desire again is dependent on the cultural differences, in Spain more than half the population has contracted a funeral insurance where´s in Scandinavian countries this number is not even 10% of the population. Scandinavian citizens however tend to choose accident covers opposed to a funeral insurance.

What´s important to cover?

When residing in a country it is important to choose an insurance package that suits one’s own unique needs, but also depended on the geographical scope of the environment.
Relating to homeowners’ insurances that could include high risks of weather phenomena like cold and warm or a higher risk of robberies etc.
Some locations have minor changes doing the year in relation to temperature where building materials therefore suffer less, there is for example big differences in the weather swings on the island of Tenerife
from north to south.
Risk assessment regarding how to cover your home should therefore also be depended on these factors.

The geographical location could also provide indications that other insurances would be interesting to consider. One of the largest fluctuations between the Spanish autonomous communities is the way
healthcare is provided it´s residents. Even if Spain has a very good healthcare system there are far more waiting for the services on the Canaries compared to the mainland.

Residents on these islands are currently on waiting lists for an average of 151 days for surgical interventions and 134 days for the first consultancy with a specialist.
Where the patient living in the Basque country would he face an average of 68 days for surgical intervention and 30 days for the first consultancy with a specialist.
If one therefore might desire to live an active lifestyle but would go crazy waiting an average of 229 days for a hip surgery, a private Health Insurance would provide more comfort,
and getting the desired treatment lightning fast compared to the National healthcare system.
The following figure is the latest rating of the Spanish health insurance companies.
The rating is made by the Spanish consumer organization OCU by interviewing 8.000 insured in Spain

Other insurances most families choose are auto, life, accident. However, many foreigners residing on the Island are business owners and even if these are less depended on
the geographical location it is always important to get the right cover.

Broker or Agent?
Compared to other countries in Europe many chooses to work with a broker of more than one insurance provider.
The benefit of this is flexibility because the broker can move you from one company to another due to an increase in premium after several claims.
Another benefit is that if one company does not provide cover for the risk the broker can place the risk in another company that he still has collaboration with.

There are also some major minuses using a broker instead of an agent. One of these could be the conflict of interest.
Let´s imagine a broker collaborate with A, B and C company on homeowners’ insurance and he gets different commissions from all three.
Will he then offer the cover that suits the clients needs best or where he obtains the highest commission? Another drawback is related to having one broker but several insurance companies.
You never really start a real relationship with the company who must pay your claim in case you need it.
Other problems could arise in claims situations where more than one policy must pay out, you then have two or more appraisers from different companies involved.
Finally, you do not obtain very much goodwill with each of the insurance companies by having your risks covered in several companies, the one you do obtain relationship with is the broker.

For more than 15 years have we been helping people improving their insurances and with a broad experience from different cultures and countries are we able to identify your needs and explain the covers in a transparent way giving you most value from your money.

Are you interested in talking to an insurance professional on how to improve your covers aligned with what’s important for you on Tenerife?
Please don´t hesitate to contact us here, fill out the form, and we will comeback to you.