The recent flash floods in Malaysia caused by heavy thunderstorms are a stark reminder that the forces of nature remain unpredictable and unavoidable.

The Disaster Management Agency (Nadma) estimates that about 4.8 million Malaysians across the country live in flood-prone areas. Alarmingly, according to a recent study, almost 74% of homeowners in Malaysia are still not covered against flood risk.

With over 40,000 people displaced by floods in 2021, the disruptive nature of ever-present and expected rainfall will continue leaving many Malaysians facing financial disaster.

Aside from floods, the country’s tropical climate brings the element of lightning strikes and fires. Propane tanks are still commonplace adding the risk of gas leaks and explosions to some households.

Many residents share common walls in apartments, condominiums, terrace, or semi-detached homes, where any water or fire damage in one home could easily spread to one adjoining neighbour or more.

With a pandemic-battered economy still on a path towards recovery, the end of lockdowns and resumption of daily life brings with it the inevitable rise in crime including break-ins and home invasions.

For most homeowners, a large portion of their savings and future retirement is represented by the equity in their property. Protecting your largest investment and nest egg means identifying and understanding all these risks and choosing the smartest options available to mitigate them.

Due to its principle-driven business model, takaful has become an increasingly popular choice for Malaysians of all faiths and beliefs, where participants faced with misfortune are assisted via donations (“tabarru”) from monetary contributions pooled into a risk fund.

Etiqa Home takaful is a great example that offers three simple and affordable coverage options for your home and belongings.

Whether you’re an owner or renter, you can minimise your risks by protecting and prioritising either your property, contents or combining coverage for both to offer the utmost peace of mind.

Houseowner takaful (for the physical building) and Householder takaful (for contents within the building) cover damages from:

• Fire, lightning, and explosions caused by gas used for domestic purposes.
• Aircraft and aerial devices or articles dropped therefrom.
• Impact damage by road vehicles or animals.
• Bursting or overflowing of water tanks, apparatus, or pipes.
• Theft by actual forcible and violent breaking into and out of the house.
• Hurricane, cyclone, typhoon, windstorm, earthquake, volcanic eruption, or flood.
• Loss of rent – limit of 10% of total sum covered
• Liability to the third parties for accidents in your house (limit of liability up to RM50,000)

In addition, Householder takaful also covers:

• Contents temporarily removed from the house (limit of 15% of total sum covered on contents).
• Damage to mirrors, other than hand mirrors (limit of RM500 per piece per any one accident).
• Compensation on death of the participant; due to fire or robbery where there is violent and forcible entry to the house (limit of RM10,000 or one-half of the sum insured on contents, whichever is lower).
• Domestic helper’s property.

To make things easier, claims can be handled directly through Etiqa’s e-Cleva app. Starting with one phone call to the e-Cleva hotline at 1-300-88-1007, takaful participants will be directed by SMS to start a video call for a claims consultant to assess the minor damages in real-time.

And instead of waiting days or weeks for your payout, once you accept and sign their offer letter from your smartphone, you’ll receive the funds directly into your bank account within 30 minutes.

With comprehensive plans starting from as low as RM5.30/month, it’s comforting to know that protecting your home and its contents is affordable.

You’ll also get an instant rebate of 15% by signing up for your coverage online. Find the right plan by choosing exactly what you want and getting an instant quote here.