Foreign car insurance for Kosovo?

Question

I might need to drive through Kosovo in the next couple of weeks. I have checked my car insurance policy and there it is stated that in Serbia only the parts under control of the Serbian Government are covered. I assumed that this would exclude Kosovo so to be sure I asked the insurance company, that confirmed Kosovo is excluded.

I also asked them whether it is possible to buy a short-term extension for Kosovo and they said it's not possible to buy that from them, but I can purchase it at the border when I enter Kosovo.

I couldn't find further information so have three questions:

1. Is it really true that I can buy short-term travel insurance for foreign cars at the border?

2. How much does this insurance cost and how long is it valid?

3. Is it possible to get it at any border crossing? I am planning to enter Kosovo from Macedonia and then leave for Montenegro before travelling into an area controlled by the Serbian Government.

Answer 1

It is indeed true that you can buy insurance at the border when entering Kosovo. The reason being that Kosovo is not a member of the Green Card system. The Kosovo Insurance Bureau has a page on border insurance listing the border entry points where you can purchase insurance:

There are a total of 13 points of sale for border insurance policies, namely:

• Point of sale in Prishtina – KIB headquarters
• Point of sale in Podujeva - Merdare
• Point of Sales Mitrovica
• Point of sale in Glloboçica
• Point of sale in Elez Han
• Point of sale in Prizren - Vërmica
• Point of sale in Peja – Kulla
• Point of sale in Gjakovë – Qafe Morin and  Qafe Prush
• Point of sale in Kamenica – Dheu i Bardhe
• Point of sale in Gjilani - Muqibabe
• Point of sale in Mutivode
• Point of sale in Leposavic - Jarinje *
• Point of sale in Zubin Potok - Bernjaka *

*These two points of sale are currently out of order (at the time of writing - Aug. 2015).

The insurance is valid for the entire length of your trip and its cost is vehicle dependent.

In terms of coverage, quoting from the linked KIB website:

2. What does the Border Insurance cover?

Border insurance covers all damages to third parties that are caused by owners of motor vehicles with foreign registration plates who hold a valid Border Insurance certificate. This insurance does not cover damages incurred to the vehicle that caused the damage, damages caused by unknown persons (N /N or hit and run), damages caused by natural disasters, as well as damages caused by the holder of such insurance to themselves by rollover, animals on the road, etc.

Answer 2

Please note that you can also buy insurance online directly from KIB (Kosovo Insurance Bureau) at https://api.bks-ks.org/PolicaOnline/en-GB Seems there is additional 1 EUR surcharge for online processing (16 EUR for 15 days, 21 EUR for 1 month instead of official 16 and 20 EUR correspondingly)