Missiles, drones and debris: what insurance really covers

9 July 2025 18:05

Every day, hundreds of cars are damaged or completely destroyed as a result of drone and missile attacks on Ukrainian cities. And recently, as civilian targets have come under more frequent fire, car owners have been seriously considering how to minimize vehicle losses.

Since the state does not compensate for the loss of a vehicle, there is no such program, and law enforcement advises waiting for reparations, there is only one option left – car insurance against war risks. It has been successfully operating in Ukraine for a long time and can cover not only the repair of a damaged car, but also the purchase of a new one in case of its destruction. What exactly do insurers offer and for what amounts – found out [Kommersant].

Worldwide, war risks are considered force majeure and are not covered by insurance companies. Therefore, war risk insurance is an offer from Ukrainian insurers in response to growing customer demand.

According to "Komersant Ukrainian" denis Yastreb, CEO of the National Association of Insurers of Ukraine, said that war risk insurance is gaining popularity today, given that such a package of services was practically absent in early 2022. After the full-scale invasion began, in the fall, after analyzing the situation, insurers offered the first policies that covered damage to property, apartments, cars, as well as life and health insurance related to military operations.

“For example, vehicles are already covered at up to half the cost of the car or full compensation. At the same time, there are both separate programs to existing hull insurance contracts and separate options in hull insurance contracts,” says Denys Yastreb.

Expensive but practical

For example, Patriot motor hull insurance against missile and drone debris provides three types of insurance coverage. The first package covers UAH 400,000 for UAH 8,500 per year. The second package provides for the sum insured of UAH 800,000 for an insurance payment of UAH 16,500 per year. And finally, the third package is for the amount of UAH 1,200,000 for a premium of UAH 25,000 per year.

Under this insurance, payments will be guaranteed if the car is partially or completely damaged as a result of hostilities: an attack by missiles or drones, including debris, direct fire, etc., except for the use of nuclear, chemical, biological weapons, including tactical weapons.

However, this policy is available only to car owners not older than 14 years. In addition, the insured event must occur on the territory of Ukraine, except for Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, Mykolaiv, Zaporizhzhia, Kharkiv regions and the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, as well as Sumy region. Also, the vehicle must be located at a distance of at least 100 km from the temporarily occupied territories and territories where military operations are underway. And at least 20 km from the border with Belarus and Russia.

Insurers reinsure themselves

In fact, the conditions of most insurance companies are roughly the same, especially when it comes to hull insurance, which contains a clause on the inclusion of war risks. In almost all cases, the insured partially covers the losses himself through a deductible (its amount varies). The deductible is usually 5-10%. It may differ for partial damage and total destruction.

Form of payment: in some cases, full coverage (100%) is provided. Often it is limited to 10%, 25% or 50% of the sum insured. Some packages include a lump sum payment upon the first insured event.

The limit of liability is from 10% to 100% of the cost of the car. The maximum coverage amounts are up to UAH 3-8 million.

The cost of insurance is on average 1% to 2% of the market value of the car per year. Sometimes there is a fixed price for a certain sum insured.

In fact, the client must choose an insurance company, or rather, a suitable policy.

What to do to get an insurance claim

As advised by attorney Valentyn Serkov, when concluding a hull insurance contract covering war risks, you need to make sure that the company is solvent. More precisely, how quickly it pays out money.

“If payments are delayed, if there are many complaints, it is better not to get involved with such companies. After all, insurance companies are also different, and the client is interested in ensuring that payments under his policy do not stretch for a year. It is ideal if the payment is made in two weeks, at most in a month,” said "Komersant Ukrainian" a lawyer.

“But the key to getting paid is the correct algorithm of actions in case of an insured event. So if your car is damaged, you need to:

Call the police and document all the details of the incident, draw up an official report indicating all the circumstances. It is important that the call comes from you and is recorded by calling “102” or “112”.

Contact the insurance company and report the occurrence of the insured event. Following the recommendations of the consultant, collect the necessary package of documents. It may be different for each insurance company, so you should follow their instructions.

Make sure that the protocol/resolution contains complete information. If the incident was captured by video recording cameras, be sure to indicate this in the document.

You should also have a record of the damage. This will not hinder, but rather help.

The main reasons for refusing to compensate for war-related damages are the provision of false information or an incident that occurred in a territory where active hostilities are ongoing (i.e., where the risk of injury is too high).

For example, if a person needs to drive a car to a 100-kilometer zone from the frontline, they should inform the insurance company about it, because if an incident occurs there, the damage to the car may not be considered an insured event.

Author: Alla Dunina

Марина Максенко

Editor