A few years ago, a friend of mine made an offhand comment that stuck with me: “Insurance feels like paying for something you hope never to use.” At the time, I laughed because it rang true. Month after month, we hand over money to insurers, and if life goes well, we don’t get anything back. Of course, when things go badly, insurance suddenly becomes invaluable. But the nagging feeling of “lost money” in the good months? That never really goes away.
That’s why OUTsurance’s OUTbonus caught my attention. Imagine an insurer promising you a slice of your premiums back — 10% every year — as long as you stick with them and don’t claim. It sounds almost too generous for an industry often painted as tight-fisted. Naturally, I had to look a little closer.
What Exactly Is the OUTbonus?
In simple terms, OUTbonus is OUTsurance’s way of rewarding loyalty and claim-free behavior. If you insure your car, home, or business through them, and you don’t submit claims for a year, they hand you back 10% of your annual premiums in cash. Not as vouchers, not as credit you can only spend with them — but actual money.
At first glance, it feels like a clever marketing hook, but it’s also something more practical. For example, if you’re paying R2,000 a month for insurance (which adds up to R24,000 a year), a 10% OUTbonus would put R2,400 back in your bank account. That’s a decent weekend away, or a small dent in December holiday shopping.
Still, when I first read about it, I couldn’t help but ask the question: how can an insurer afford to just give money back like this? Insurance companies are not charities. There’s got to be a catch, right?
The Psychology of Cash Back
One way to look at OUTbonus is that it flips the emotional script on insurance. Instead of only associating your insurer with claims, accidents, or disasters, there’s now a small “reward” baked in for the months when nothing goes wrong. It turns that uneasy feeling of paying “for nothing” into something tangible.
It may even encourage better driving habits. Think about it: if you know you’ve got a couple thousand rand on the line, you might think twice before rushing through a yellow traffic light or ignoring that warning light on your dashboard. That’s speculation, of course, but the behavioral nudge seems likely.
But What’s in It for OUTsurance?
Whenever companies hand out cash, you can bet there’s a strategy behind it. For OUTsurance, the OUTbonus serves a few purposes:
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Customer retention. Insurance is notoriously sticky — people don’t like switching providers often. Knowing you’re due for a payout at the end of the year makes you less likely to shop around.
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Fewer claims. A policyholder hoping for their bonus might think twice before filing smaller claims. That alone saves the insurer money.
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Brand differentiation. In a crowded industry where every ad looks the same (smiling family, shiny car, green lawns), having a unique perk makes OUTsurance stand out.
In other words, while you’re getting cash back, OUTsurance is likely saving more by keeping you loyal and by reducing claim frequency.
My First Brush With OUTbonus
A couple of years ago, I was shopping around for car insurance. OUTsurance’s quote came in slightly higher than a competitor’s. I almost dismissed it outright — why pay more? But then the consultant mentioned the OUTbonus.
I remember doing the math in the margins of a notebook: higher monthly premium, yes, but if I got 10% back every year, the difference wasn’t so big anymore. And the idea of a yearly cash payout felt oddly satisfying. It’s almost like insurance was turning into a savings account with benefits.
I didn’t end up going with them at the time — mostly because I was moving cities and unsure about my job situation. But the OUTbonus idea lingered in the back of my mind. It made me realize how much emotion plays into choosing financial products, not just the raw numbers.
A Few Caveats You Should Know
Now, before anyone rushes out to switch insurers purely for the OUTbonus, it’s worth pausing. Like many perks, the details matter. Here are a few realities that aren’t always highlighted in the glossy brochures:
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It’s only for claim-free years. If you claim, you may forfeit the OUTbonus. So that R2,400 you were mentally banking on? It vanishes the moment a car bumper gets dented or a geyser bursts.
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Not every product qualifies. OUTbonus doesn’t apply across every single OUTsurance product. You’d need to check whether your specific policy (say, business cover or specialized items) is included.
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It might mask higher premiums. Some critics argue that OUTsurance can afford to pay out bonuses because their base premiums are slightly higher than the market average. If that’s true in your case, you may not actually be “saving” money — you’re just getting part of your own higher payment back.
None of this makes the OUTbonus bad, of course. But it does remind us to compare actual numbers instead of getting swept up in the appeal of cash-back rewards.
Why People Love It Anyway
For many policyholders, the OUTbonus creates a small moment of delight each year. Insurance is usually silent in the background — until disaster strikes. But OUTbonus changes the rhythm. Every year, people get a reminder that their loyalty (and their luck) pays off.
I’ve heard stories of people using their OUTbonus to fund back-to-school shopping, pay for a long-overdue car service, or even just treat themselves to a fancy dinner. And unlike a loyalty card or store points, it’s cash in your hand — flexible and unrestrictive.
In an age when so many companies are trying to gamify loyalty (air miles, reward apps, points systems), OUTsurance went for something refreshingly simple: just give people money back.
The Bigger Picture: Insurance and Trust
If you zoom out, OUTbonus may suggest something deeper about how insurers are trying to rebuild trust. For decades, insurance has had a reputation problem. People complain about claims being rejected, fine print tripping them up, or call centers being impossible to reach.
By handing money back proactively, OUTsurance shifts the narrative slightly. Instead of the insurer only being present in moments of crisis, they also show up in moments of stability. That doesn’t erase frustrations when claims get messy, but it does soften the perception that “the insurer always wins.”
Of course, skeptics could argue it’s a carefully calculated marketing ploy, and they wouldn’t be wrong. But in the often-cynical world of financial services, even a calculated gesture can feel refreshing.
Should You Base Your Choice on OUTbonus Alone?
Here’s where the nuance comes in. OUTbonus is attractive, but it shouldn’t be the only factor in choosing insurance. Things like claim settlement speed, customer service, and actual coverage terms matter far more in the long run.
Imagine two scenarios:
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You choose a cheaper insurer with no cash-back feature, and over five years you save R20,000 in lower premiums.
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You choose OUTsurance and over the same five years you collect maybe R12,000 in OUTbonus payouts — but you’ve been paying slightly higher premiums.
Depending on your claims history, you might come out ahead in either scenario. The key is to compare apples with apples — get multiple quotes, factor in the potential OUTbonus, and decide what feels right for your circumstances.
A Final Anecdote
One of my relatives has been with OUTsurance for nearly a decade. Every year, she gets her OUTbonus and proudly tells the family what she spent it on. One year it covered Christmas gifts, another year it went straight into her emergency fund. She admits she’s considered switching insurers once or twice, but the idea of “losing her OUTbonus streak” always pulled her back.
It’s a funny thing — she doesn’t rave about OUTsurance’s call center or their app or even their premium levels. The OUTbonus is the single defining feature that keeps her loyal. That tells you something about the power of simple rewards.
Wrapping It Up
OUTsurance’s OUTbonus isn’t magic. It won’t make insurance cheap, and it won’t cover the sting of a rejected claim. But it does make the experience of paying premiums feel a little less one-sided. For some people, that’s enough.
If you’re the kind of person who rarely claims, the OUTbonus could mean a nice yearly payout that feels like found money. If you’re accident-prone, it may not be worth much at all.
What I like about it — and why I think it’s worth talking about — is how it reimagines the relationship between insurer and client. Instead of a purely transactional deal, there’s a sense (however strategic) that the insurer is sharing in your “good fortune” of staying claim-free. And in an industry often criticized for coldness, that small touch of humanity can go a long way.
So, is the OUTbonus a reason to pick OUTsurance? Maybe. Is it a reason to stay loyal once you’re already in? For many people, absolutely. And if nothing else, it turns the annual ritual of paying insurance from something you dread into something you might actually look forward to.