21st August 2026 - 4 min read
The General Insurance Association of Malaysia (PIAM) has advised homeowners to notify their insurers when installing permanent electric vehicle (EV) chargers, as electrical upgrades can affect the amount needed to rebuild a property.
The advice comes after a recent fire in Alam Damai, Cheras, where an EV that was being charged at a home was believed to have started a blaze that destroyed a two-storey house.
That does not mean EV-related fires are automatically excluded from home insurance. PIAM has clarified that standard houseowner and fire insurance policies generally cover specified perils, including fire damage, provided there is no fraud, deliberate act or breach of policy terms.
But if a fire does happen, your insurer will investigate what caused it and whether the property’s electrical systems were properly installed and maintained.
If you’re planning to install a permanent EV charger at home, there are four things to do.
1. Tell your insurer before or during the installation.
Let your insurer, agent or broker know that you’re adding a permanent EV charger to the property. PIAM recommends doing this because electrical upgrades can affect the cost of rebuilding your home.
2. Ask if your sum insured needs to be updated.
Your insurer can tell you whether the installation changes your existing coverage or the amount your home should be insured for.
Being underinsured can affect how much you receive if you need to make a claim. PIAM has previously warned that renovations and other changes to a property can increase rebuilding costs without homeowners updating their sum insured.
3. Get the charger professionally installed.
PIAM has emphasised the importance of professional installation. If a fire occurs, insurers may look at official investigation reports to establish whether electrical safety standards were followed and whether there were any uncertified modifications.
4. Keep the installation paperwork.
Keep your invoices and installation documents after the work is completed. These records can help show what was installed and how the electrical work was carried out if the insurer needs to investigate a future claim.
PIAM’s clarification is that standard home and fire insurance policies can cover fire damage involving an EV, provided the usual policy conditions are met. The association has not said that every homeowner with an EV charger must purchase a separate insurance policy.
PIAM has also said permanently installed, hard-wired EV chargers are treated as building fixtures and fittings under home insurance policies. Portable or unattached charging cables are different and typically fall under motor insurance policies or specialised add-on packages.
However, coverage depends on the policy. Some insurers also offer specific protection for home EV chargers, so ask what your existing policy covers and whether any additional protection is available.
An EV charger is fine as long as the electrical work was approved and documented with your insurance company.
If you have told your insurer about the charger, used a professional installer and kept the relevant documents, you have a clearer record of what was installed if something goes wrong.
PIAM said insurers may rely on official investigation reports, including those from the fire and rescue department, to verify whether electrical safety standards were maintained and rule out uncertified modifications.
That could mean more scrutiny during a fire claim, particularly if there is no documentation showing how the electrical installation was carried out or if the work did not meet the relevant requirements.
For homeowners, notifying the insurer is therefore a relatively simple step that can help avoid questions later.
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Christina writes about personal finance with an eye for making the complicated feel straightforward. She is drawn to the everyday money decisions people face and genuinely enjoys finding the clearest way to explain them. Between articles, she is probably napping, on a hiking trail, or terrorising her sister’s cats.
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