The road tax in Brazil includes compulsory limited third party insurance cover. This is known as Danos Pessoais Causados por Veículos Automotores de Vias Terrestres (DPVAT) which means “personal injury caused by road vehicles”.
This is sometimes referred to as Seguro Obrigatrio or compulsory insurance. This ensures all vehicles have minimum third-party cover and victims of road accidents will receive damages or compensation for serious injuries or death caused by an otherwise uninsured vehicle regardless of culpability. It is operated by FENASEG (The Federation of National Private Insurance and Capitalisation Firms).
No other insurance is obligatory. Because of the poor state of many roads, driving conditions, high volume of traffic and high incidence of vehicle related crime, more comprehensive cover - or at least cover for theft of vehicle and contents - is advisable.
Many private insurance companies provide motor insurance, and in many cases policies can be arranged by visiting the office, by post, telephone or online. Most insurers have a range of policies with varying levels of cover, excess, and premiums which depend on age, previous claims and convictions and driving experience.
The primary types of cover are:
Excess fees exist at varying levels depending on the policy and are called Franquia.
No claims bonus/discounts exist and are called bonus/disconto. They may be transferable from other countries or between policies in Brazil depending on the policy and policy providers. Annual rates may increase if a claim is made when an accident was the driver’s fault; if the driver has no accidents the rates will decrease.
Refunds may be available on cancelled policies, depending on the exact details of the policy contract.
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