Causeway insurance covers what exactly?

Is it a Saudi car or a Bahrain car?

If it's a Saudi car and your female partner wants to drive it in Bahrain then I'm not sure this can happen.

The causeway insurance is for covering a Bahrain car in Saudi or covering a Saudi car in Bahrain.

This is the main reason why if given the choice, guys who work in Saudi get a Bahrain car if they live there as some companies won't give multi entry/exit visa's for the vehicle.

It's easy and cheap to rent in Bahrain

It's my own Saudi car so there's no issue with taking it in and out. I'll call Tawuniya and ask them what's possible. I'll post back here if I find out anything useful.

The insurance cover is only 3rd party.
You partner can drive if she has a brit license, international is better or you might have to go and check with traffic at Isa Town

The causeway insurance covers the car not the driver

Causeway insurance is only 3rd party which means it will cover any losses that are incurred to 3rd parties but not to your own vehicle.  You need your own insurance to cover losses to your car.  The reason you buy causeway insurance is that by law, insurance providers in Bahrain (or Saudi) cannot provide 3rd party coverage in each others countries. So in essence, it's a top up on your existing policy when you cross the border.  Within your own borders, your own policy applies.

Your partner can drive the vehicle but in the case of an accident, she must be able to prove that she is legally licensed to drive in Bahrain.  If yes, then causeway insurance will cover 3rd party damages.  Your own insurance - you need to check as some insurance companies require you to register additional drivers or have certain conditions and it might be that insurance providers in Saudi may not recognize female drivers.

thanks for that. Yes, I called Tawuniya and spoke to a rep (who was female). She couldn't answer whether a female partner would be covered on the spot. About a week later, she called me back and confirmed that my partner can drive it and would be covered in Bahrain.

Hi,

I wonder if anyone can offer me advice. I am about to move from Saudi to Bahrain for work and I am currently in Bahrain waiting for the new work visa to arrive. My plan will be to leave Saudi on final exit and transfer my car as well e.g. re-register it in Bahrain.

I am 4 days in visiting Bahrain with a 10-day causeway insurance package on my Saudi car which I may have to renew if the work visa doesn't come soon.

My question is, should I just cross back over the causeway on the 10th day the insurance expires, or try to get a new 1-year car insurance in Bahrain? Actually, I don't think this 2nd option is viable as the car is still registered in Saudi.

Any other options available to me?

Any advice you can give would be much appreciated.

Thanks

P.S. I also use Tawuniya in Saudi but I couldn't find an office address listed for them in Bahrain. Do they have one?

just go back to the causeway and do a u-turn. Pretty sure Saudi reg cars can't be comprehensively insured in Bahrain.

You have to make sure the car re-registration has been done before leaving on final exit, right?

Yes I very much doubt my Saudi car get Bahraini car insurance.

Yes, I have all the documents to transfer the car including a letter of no objection from my (previous) employer.

I spoke to one of the car agents in the car place in Naseem, Riyadh, and he said he can do all the paperwork and get the export plates issued for 750 SARs.

Whether the causeway crossing (to re-register the car) has to be done before or can be done on final exit, I have no idea.

Anyone know?

Thanks.

well you can't get a final exit visa without first having your car removed from your iqama i.e. sold and transferred to a new owner or exported. Therefore, I think the only way you can manage this is if you bring the car over to Bahrain to do the transfer and then go back to do final exit.

On the topic of car insurance. I have a Saudi car with insurance from AXA. They told me they cover damages both in Saudi and Bahrain. I am pretty sure for the extra i paid my car damages are covered. I buy a one year insurance from causeway which covers damage done to public property or other vehicles/person involved.

Insurance in Bahrain is cheaper than in Saudi and i reckon its just better to own a car in Bahrain.

On the topic of car insurance. I have a Saudi car with insurance from AXA. They told me they cover damages both in Saudi and Bahrain. I am pretty sure for the extra i paid my car damages are covered. I buy a one year insurance from causeway which covers damage done to public property or other vehicles/person involved.

Insurance in Bahrain is cheaper than in Saudi and i reckon its just better to own a car with Bahrain plates.

Hi,

yes, I plan to get a final exit visa first and have my car removed from my iqama i.e. before it is exported.

So, again, yes I will bring the car over to Bahrain to do the transfer and then go back to do final exit.

Still haven't figured out the insurance malarky for Bahrain as the Tawuniya guys in Saudi told me I could keep my Saudi insurance open and just close it when in Bahrain and start a new one there. That doesn't seem possible now given there appears not to be any Tawuniya offices here in Bahrain! I guess he gave me a bum steer!

Cheers

I recently got a job in Khobar and planning to commute everyday from Bahrain. I have couple of question which people who are commuting everyday can answer.

1. Having a Saudi registered office car with authorization letter from my company, do I need to pay BD2 everyday for insurance or I can pay lump sum for a longer period and avoid the cue?
2. Is there a way to pay BD 2 toll fee each time your travel or it can be paid lump sum and get some sort of card to avoid paying every day?

Waiting for your replies.

You can pay in bulk for both.

For the insurance, the next time you get to the insurance payment booth, ask them for the period you want. You can get up to a year. I forget exactly, how much a year is but it's way more reasonable than buying it for shorter periods. They have a whole range of periods so you can choose the one that works for you. Just remember to take plenty of cash!

For the toll card, that's a bit more complex. On the Saudi side, immediately you hit the island, there's an admin building on the left. In there is an office that issues the cards. You can only buy SAR850 or multiples of at one time and, if it's your first card, you can only do SAR850 (no multiples the first time). They prefer you pay with a Saudi bank debit card. If you want to pay cash, you'll have to take a little slip, go across to a bank on the Causeway and fart around in there. So, take a debit card if you have one. First time you do this will need to go in person with your iqama to get the card. After that, a friend can charge your card for you. Bear in mind that the office is open something like 8am-2pm on weekdays only which means that, if you work, you can hardly ever get there.

Last time I went, I put on SAR 1700 which should last me for 100 trips because you get a slight discount and it's only SAR 17 / BD1.7 each time. That's 10 working weeks, so you can decide if the hassle of doing that is worth it.

Apart from the slight discount (which let's face it, if you're working in Saudi is probably not your highest concern) you do get to access the Authorized Personnel only lane at the toll (far right). However, when it's really backed up, donkeys use this lane to pay cash anyway so it only really helps on normal days and saves you probably 1 or 2 mins each way.

To add to my post. The office is open from 8:30 am, not 8am as I stated.

I will post separately on this when I have got more info and have finished the process but just for reference, if you own your car in Saudi and wish to export it to the gulf. In my case bring it to Bahrain, then it will be liable to 5% import duty.

There is some age restriction that applies, something like less than one year old, no problem, up to 5 years, you gotta pay and more than that you'd have to check whether it can be imported.

The exception to this is if you can provide the original tax receipt that the car dealership paid the import duty. This is sometimes called the Bayan Mukasa , it's notoriously hard to get hold of. Particularly from Toyota because they apparently have some dispute with Bahrain Toyota. It might be easier with other brands.

It's probably equally applicable regardless of countries in the gulf, so if buying a new car, insist of this paperwork up front, it can add $$$ to the resale value. I got sent chasing round the houses to and ministry offices to find it and ended up with nowt but a huge bill on the causeway.

sorry to hear that vikpaw... thanks for posting so others can avoid this charge. I was considering this if I finally make the break with Saudi. Now it's probably worth my while just selling in Saudi and buying again in Bahrain.

Yep, depending on the age of the vehicle.
Toyota really hold their value after a couple of years assuming it's not been abused. First couple they lose loads of value.
Price to buy in Bahrain is pretty similar. I was told in Bahrain to when selling a Saudi car they won't accept the service history but to be honest my car was practically new and it's cheaper to pay the tax and keep it.