KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 27 — One in two Malaysians do not have insurance or takaful coverage for their homes and 74 per cent of homeowners have no coverage against damage caused by floods, said Zurich General Takaful Malaysia Berhad chief executive officer Shamsul Azman.

He said according to a survey conducted by Zurich Malaysia in September last year, 43 per cent of homeowners were unaware that home content was not necessarily covered under home insurance or takaful.

"With floods occurring every year, I am a bit concerned about these unprotected assets. The overall losses from the major floods that hit the country last year were estimated to be worth RM6.1 billion.

"Damage to homes caused losses of RM1.2 billion while damage to vehicles was estimated at RM1 billion. These heavy losses can be minimised with takaful or insurance coverage,” he told reporters recently.

Shamsul said the survey also found that 59 per cent of vehicle owners do not have adequate protection against flood damage.

Therefore, he advised vehicle owners to take additional special perils coverage to protect their vehicles from damage caused by the disaster.

As for vehicle coverage, he said the special perils under Zurich Malaysia insurance and takaful policies provide protection for vehicles including when a vehicle was being driven or in a static mode (stationary/parking).

He said Zurich Malaysia also offered a conventional and syariah-compliant Z-Home Protect Takaful plan to protect a home and its contents. — Bernama