Insurance in Spain for expats & international residents

What is compulsory, and what is not

A short list, because the answer surprises people in both directions.

The two that catch people are motor and health. Motor because the obligation attaches to the vehicle rather than to whether you drive it, so a car standing unused still needs cover unless its registration status removes the obligation. Health because it is not compulsory to live here, yet it is a hard condition on several residence routes — which means the same product is optional for one person and mandatory for their neighbour.

A mortgage lender may require insurance covering damage to the mortgaged property as a condition connected with the loan. That is contractual rather than a general legal duty, and it cannot require you to use its own insurer: it must accept an equivalent alternative policy without charging an assessment fee for doing so, and it must not worsen your loan conditions for that reason.

How Spanish insurance differs from what you are used to

Most of the difficulty international residents have here is not with the cover. It is with conventions that differ from the market they came from.

You can ask for the policy in a language you read. Article 8 of the Insurance Contract Act lets the policyholder choose which of the official Spanish languages the policy is written in, and where the parties agree it can be written in another language. There is no rule that a Spanish text governs; where a policy names a prevailing version, that is a clause in your contract, so find it. A summary provided for convenience is not the contract.

You have one month to challenge a document that is wrong. Where the policy differs from the proposal or from what was agreed, Article 8 gives you one month from delivery to require the insurer to correct it. After that the policy as issued stands, so read it when it arrives.

Renewal is automatic, and the notice periods are not symmetrical. To stop a policy renewing you must give notice at least one month before expiry. An insurer that does not wish to renew must give you two months. Diary both dates; the asymmetry catches people every year.

Some catastrophic events are not handled by your insurer. The Consorcio de Compensación de Seguros deals with certain extraordinary risks, funded by a surcharge already inside your premium. Eligibility depends on the event meeting the qualifying conditions, so it is a defined mechanism rather than blanket protection.

One word means several things. A franquicia is usually an excess — the first slice of a claim you pay. In dental policies the same word is often used for a dental tariff, a list of prices you pay yourself. Establishing which meaning applies is worth doing before you sign anything.

Arranging cover when you move here

The order matters more than the choices, because some things cannot be arranged retrospectively.

If a residence route requires health insurance, that comes first — the policy has to exist before the application is decided, and the documentation has to exist before the appointment. Everything else can follow arrival.

Property cover should start at completion rather than at move-in. Risk transfers with ownership, and an empty newly bought property is exposed to precisely the things people insure against.

Vehicle cover should start when ownership transfers, not when you first intend to drive. A car you own and have not insured is both uninsured and, if registered here in ordinary status, in breach of the obligation.

Contents and the optional products — dental, pet, funeral — can wait until you are settled and know what you actually own and need.

• Health cover for a visa route: before the application.
• Home cover: from completion at the notary.
• Vehicle cover: from the moment ownership transfers.
• Contents and optional cover: once you are settled.

What tends to go wrong

The same handful of problems account for most of the difficulty we see, across every product.

• Insuring for the wrong figure. Buildings should reflect rebuild cost, contents replacement cost. Where the insured sum is below the value at risk, compensation can be reduced in the same proportion — including on partial claims.
• Describing the situation as it will be rather than as it is. An undeclared regular driver, a let that was never mentioned, a property described as occupied.
• Answering a health questionnaire from memory. The duty is limited to the questions the insurer asks, but answer those properly: vagueness is priced conservatively, and an inaccurate declaration can see a claim reduced proportionally.
• Buying the cheaper version of the right policy. Especially on visa routes, where the copay version of a compliant policy is not compliant.
• Letting cover lapse while switching. Confirm the new policy is in force before cancelling the old.
• Missing the renewal notice. Sent in Spanish, to the address on file, at the wrong moment.

Where to start

If you are not sure which page you need, this is the shortest route to the right one.

• Applying for or renewing a residence permission → visa health insurance.
• Living here and want faster access to doctors → health insurance.
• Buying or already own a property → home insurance.
• Bought or importing a vehicle → car or motorbike insurance.
• Travelling from Spain, or visiting → travel insurance.
• Just want the common questions answered → insurance FAQs.