Currently, insurance premium is only linked to the vehicle type and engine capacity. Vehicle owners get some discount if they haven’t made a claim in the preceding year. This will be the first such initiative in India to link insurance premium to driving record.
New Delhi: Traffic violators in Delhi could be in for a shock as insurance companies will soon charge higher premium for third-party insurance from them. The framework, to be finalised in the next one month, proposes negative points for traffic offences and this will form the basis for insurance companies to charge a “penal” premium.
T L Alamelu, member (nonlife) of Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) said the pilot project will start soon in the national capital and it could be extended to other states. “The recommendations of a committee set up to frame the norms have been submitted and we expect to roll it out soon,” she added.
In yet another move, the Delhi traffic police is also working on a project to catch speeding drivers who are now using mobile apps to detect location of CCTV cameras and speed guns. “We are working on a plan to address this, which has become a trend. There are technologies to measure the speed of a vehicle between two installed cameras at a certain gap. We will fix this issue,” said special commissioner (traffic) Taj Hassan.
The similar trick was initially used on Yamuna Expressway to catch speed violations. “But the best option would be to notify the service provider and ask it to deactivate the mechanism since it’s illegal. Some countries have done this,” said a government official.
TOI had on September 9 first reported that a panel with members from IRDAI, Delhi traffic police and transport department was set up following a recommendation from a high powered committee under the Union home secretary, which looked into the issues of traffic management in the national capital. This will be the first such initiative in India to link insurance premium to the driving record.
Currently, the insurance premium is only linked to the type of vehicle and engine capacity. Vehicle owners get some discount, if they have not made any claim during the preceding year. Top executives of major insurance companies on Tuesday batted for linking insurance to the driver to reduce number of accidents.
