Check car insurance in Zambia — disc, certificate

Short answerChecked 31 October 2026

Neither the PIA nor RTSA publishes an online tool to check a single motor policy. Check it in three steps: read the insurance disc on the windscreen (registration number, engine and chassis numbers, expiry date, issuing insurer: SI 33 of 2015); check that the insurer, and the broker or agent who sold the policy, are on the PIA's list of licensed insurance entities for 2026; then ask the insurer to confirm the certificate number in writing. Selling insurance without a licence, and insuring with an unlicensed insurer, are both offences (Insurance Act 2021, sections 6 and 166).

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Answers come from the law, the regulator and the insurers' own documents, with the source under each answer. General information, not advice.

What excess will I pay on a claim?Am I covered if I use the car for business?What should I check before I renew?

On this page · 5 sections

1. Read the disc and the certificate
2. Check the insurer and the seller on the PIA list
3. Confirm with the insurer
FAQ
Sources

1. Read the disc and the certificate

The Road Traffic (Certificates of Security and Insurance) (Display) Regulations, 2015 require the insurer to issue a disc with each certificate of insurance, and the holder to display it on the vehicle so that it is clearly visible (SI 33 of 2015). The disc (Form T.1) shows:

Vehicle registration number, make, model, colour and type
Engine number and chassis number
Date of issue, disc number, town
Expiry date and quarter
Issued by (the insurer)

Compare the registration, engine and chassis numbers with the vehicle's registration certificate. Using a vehicle without the disc displayed is an offence (regulation 4).

2. Check the insurer and the seller on the PIA list

Open the PIA's Licensed Insurance Entities 2026 (published 2 October 2026). It lists the 24 general insurers who can sell motor cover, the 95 insurance brokers, each insurer's insurance agents, and the licensed assessors, loss adjusters and claims agents. The PIA warns that offering an insurance service without a licence breaks section 6 of the Insurance Act, and that insuring with an unlicensed insurer breaks section 166 (licensed entities).

Step by step: check an insurer, broker or agent.

3. Confirm with the insurer

Call or write to the insurer named on the disc, using the contacts on its own website rather than numbers on the document, and ask it to confirm the certificate number, the vehicle and the expiry date. If the insurer cancels a policy before its end (other than at expiry or on the policyholder's death) without the holder's consent, it must notify the Inspector-General of Police (Road Traffic Act, section 99).

Buying a used car: insurance ceases on change of ownership (RTSA). Insure it in your name before you drive it.

Already insured?

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Next step

1. Find the cover that fits

Frequently asked questions

How do I verify motor insurance in Zambia?

Read the insurance disc, check the insurer and the seller on the PIA's list of licensed insurance entities for 2026, and ask the insurer to confirm the certificate number. No public online checker is published by the PIA or RTSA.

Do I have to display an insurance disc in Zambia?

Yes. SI 33 of 2015 requires the disc issued with the certificate of insurance to be displayed clearly on the vehicle.

What if the person who sold me insurance is not on the PIA list?

Do not pay, or ask the insurer to confirm in writing that the policy exists. Report unlicensed sellers to the PIA Registrar (pia@pia.org.zm).