A renewal notice is the annual bill for your car insurance contract: it sets the renewal date, the premium to pay and your exit rights. Pro rata temporis then works out, to the day, what you owe or get back: annual premium × remaining days ÷ 365.
A few Belgian terms for readers new to the market. Omnium is comprehensive cover: mini omnium covers theft, fire, glass and natural forces, full omnium adds damage to your own car. Third party liability (RC) is the compulsory cover. The bonus-malus is a 0-22 scale on which each at fault claim moves you up. The FSMA is the Belgian Financial Services and Markets Authority.
What is a renewal notice in car insurance?
A document sent before each anniversary of your contract. It states next year's premium, tax included, the payment method, your bonus-malus degree and the deadline for acting.
It is also the only moment when the premium changes without you asking for anything. A Belgian contract runs for a year, then renews tacitly: if you do nothing, you have accepted. Our guide to car insurance premium increases details what lies behind those rises.
What is the renewal date of my car insurance?
The one written in your special conditions, and repeated on each notice. It does not always match the signing date: a contract can be set to 1 January, for instance, whatever day you took it out.
That date commands everything else: the tax rate, the starting point of notice periods, the pro rata calculation.
How is pro rata temporis calculated?
Annual premium × unexpired days ÷ 365. All it takes is a calculator.
Example. Annual premium of 1,135 € for a full omnium, paid up front, renewal on 1 January. You notify your cancellation on 30 June; with two months' notice, it takes effect on 31 August. Days elapsed: 243. Days remaining: 122.
Premium earned: 1,135 × 243 ÷ 365 = 755.63 €. Refund: 379.37 €.
How much do you get back if you cancel mid-year?
It depends on the effective date, not the date you send the letter. Since 1 October 2024, a contract concluded or tacitly renewed after that date can be cancelled at any time after the first year, with two months' notice. Before, it was three months and only at the renewal date, as Test-Achats recalls. Our article on how to switch car insurance describes the procedure; here, we count.
Does a one day gap change the tax?
Yes, by a few euros. The programme law of 30 May 2026 raised the tax from 9.25 % to 9.60 %, and only the renewal date of the premium decides the rate, as Assuralia explains. On a 300 € net third party premium, taxes and levies go from 27.10 % to 27.45 %: 381.30 € for a renewal on 30 June, 382.35 € on 1 July. One day, 1.05 €. Our article on car insurance premium tax gives the detail line by line.
Five situations, five calculations
| Situation | Rule | Calculation on the profile's premiums |
|---|---|---|
| Cancellation after one year, effective 31 August | Two months' notice | 379.37 € refunded on 1,135 € |
| Car sold on 15 April | Unexpired premium returned, in principle | 808.49 € (full omnium) or 251.45 € (353 € third party) |
| Increase beyond indexation | Three months to cancel | Refund depends on the effective date |
| Policy taken on 15 September, renewal on 1 January | First premium pro rata | 335.84 € for 108 days |
| Monthly payment | Debits stop at the effective date | Final statement, nothing to refund if all is paid up |
Premiums come from the public Mon-Assurance-Auto grid recorded on 26 January 2026 (our own averages across nine insurers); the amounts are orders of magnitude, not your quote.
What should you check on the notice before paying?
Six points, in this order.
- The renewal date: it must match your contract.
- Net premium and total premium: taxes are about 27 % on third party and on omnium.
- The bonus-malus degree: compare it with your claims history certificate.
- Declared mileage and use: a mistake costs you when a claim arrives.
- Instalment fees: see our article on monthly or annual payment.
- The cancellation period: two months after the first year, three months after an increase according to P&V.
Method and sources
The premiums of 1,135 € (full omnium), 353 € (third party) and 782 € (omnium supplement) are our own averages across nine insurers, taken from the public grids of Mon-Assurance-Auto (Yago S.A., broker licensed by the FSMA under number 114863), recorded on 26 January 2026 and consulted on 30 September 2026. The profile simulated by that publisher (a female driver born in 1968, Golf Diesel 85 kW, Walloon Brabant) differs from this site's reference profile (35 year old driver, Golf 1.5 TSI, Flemish Brabant, five years without a claim): only ratios are transposable. The pro rata figures are our own calculations by the day, on 365 days. The legal framework is the Insurance Act of 4 April 2014; notice rules are documented by Test-Achats and P&V, and the tax by Assuralia.
This site compares and calculates. It does not sell insurance, is not an intermediary and gives no individual recommendation: speak to your insurer or a broker licensed by the FSMA. In a dispute over a statement, the Insurance Ombudsman is competent; if no insurer will cover you, the Bureau de Tarification, the Belgian pricing bureau, is the legal remedy. No link is affiliated.
In short
The renewal notice opens the window in which you negotiate, compare or leave. Keep the formula, premium × remaining days ÷ 365: on 1,135 €, an exit on 31 August refunds 379.37 €. Run a premium simulation, put offers side by side in the comparison tool and check our ranking of the best car insurers before the renewal date.
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Damien décortique le marché belge de l'assurance auto depuis plus de dix ans. Ancien gestionnaire de sinistres en compagnie, devenu analyste indépendant, il lit les conditions générales ligne par ligne, compare les primes réelles de AG, Ethias, KBC, Belfius, P&V ou Corona Direct, et teste les simulateurs du marché. Sa conviction : beaucoup de Belges surpaient leur prime ou découvrent une exclusion le jour du sinistre, faute d'avoir comparé les garanties. Sur ce site, il traduit le jargon des contrats (RC, omnium, franchise, bonus-malus) en conseils concrets, chiffrés et sans lien commercial caché.