Good news about expired driver’s licence cards in South Africa

South African insurers Momentum Insure, King Price, and OUTsurance say driving and being in an accident with an expired driver’s licence card won’t necessarily make your claim null and void.

Instead, each claim is validated on its own merits and considerations. Issues such as roadworthiness are far more crucial in motor vehicle accident claims.

MyBroadband asked several insurers how they approach claims where a client has been in an accident and has an expired licence card.

Momentum Insure’s executive head for claims and claims support, Funeka Ngewu, says the firm has access to Transunion eNatis data in order to validate a driver’s licence and when it expired.

“We would register and validate the claim to confirm how the accident occurred and get details around why the license has not been renewed to assist us in validating the claim,” said Ngewu.

“Each claim is validated on its own merit. The issue around expiry is for us to consider the materiality of the incident to the expired driver’s license.”

She added that Momentum Insure will also weigh considerations around why the driver’s licence hasn’t been renewed.

“Has the driver been driving during the expiry period, or were they a dormant driver? Lastly, whether the licence can be renewed or whether the driver would need to have it re-issued,” she said.

King Price client experience partner Wynand van Vuuren said holding an expired licence card won’t affect a client’s cover.

“What you certainly need to do is renew your licence as soon as possible — but it won’t affect your cover,” said Van Vuuren.

“Just make sure the vehicle is always roadworthy, and there are no additional factors that can cause or contribute to an accident.”

He said the most important issue surrounding motor vehicle accident claims is establishing a causal link, or a direct link to the cause of the accident or loss.

“For example, all insurance policies state that your vehicle must always be in a roadworthy condition,” said Van Vuuren.

“But if your tyres are worn, and someone drives into you while you are stationary, an insurer cannot reject your claim, as there was no causal link between the worn tyres and the accident.”

He said the same applies to expired licence discs. If your licence disc is expired and you’re in an accident or your car is stolen, insurers must still pay those claims as the licence disc isn’t material to the incident.

OUTsurance says that as a general rule, it doesn’t consider expired licences a valid reason to reject a claim, particularly where there is no materiality to the loss.

“Should the only concern be the expiry of the licence, we would settle our client’s claim,” it said.

In May 2024, a MyBroadband reader shared their experience when a police officer stopped them, and their licence was more than five months past its expiry date.

Having only recently realised the status of their driver’s licence card, they had applied for a renewal time slot the day prior to being pulled over.

Fearing being fined or arrested, the motorist explained the situation to the traffic officer and showed confirmation of their renewal booking. The officer let them continue.

According to the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa), a licence card is considered valid for three months past the printed expiry date, provided the holder has applied to renew within the grace period.

In the MyBroadband reader’s case, Outa said the traffic cop may have confused the timeframe, and the driver may have gotten lucky on the day, as they should have been issued a fine.

“The traffic officer might have been aware of the aforementioned but maybe got the period wrong,” Outa said.

However, not all motorists will be as lucky, and its important to know your rights in such situation, which Outa outlined.

This includes the right to request the officer’s details and refuse to pay any on-site fines or other payments.

“An officer may not demand payment at the scene for this fine,” it said.

“Motorists with expired licences can be fined and are not supposed to be arrested.”

If a motorist believes they were unfairly fined for driving with an expired driver’s licence card, they can either accept the fine and pay or challenge it in court.