Azerbaijan, Baku, Feb. 23 / Trend A. Akhundov /
Following the adoption of a new law on mandatory insurance in Azerbaijan, the general public's interest in vehicle insurance has increased, Atesgah Sıgorta said.
"According to our observations, the Azerbaijani population's interest in vehicle insurance has increased," the company told Trend today. "If we consider company statistics, we see significant growth. The number of individuals applying for this insurance has doubled in 2012 compared to 2011."
Taking into account the increasing number of vehicles and traffic accidents in the country, compulsory vehicle insurance is of great importance for the population, the company said.
"We think the mechanism for attracting people to compulsory vehicle insurance is effective as vehicle owners must submit a liability insurance policy for an annual technical checkup," the company said.
After the new law came into force, the basic cost of insurance became 50 manat and is accepted for cars with an engine capacity up to 1,500 cubic centimeters.
Previously, insurance premiums for all cars amounted to 10 manat.
According to the new law, the price will vary depending on engine size.
Insurance companies started using this new law on Dec. 16.
A growth of compulsory vehicle insurance applications has not been observed in all companies. However, the fee amount has increased.
"The fees have increased on average 15 times while maintaining the same number of insurance policies," Standard Insurance Deputy Chairman of the Board Aydin Rahmanov told Trend today.
He said insurance companies try to attract people. Their agency network expands. Information campaigns are carried out to expand coverage.
The new law includes several major changes to the liability of vehicle owners. The previous law stated that the payment for damage to life and health, the harm on one occasion, must hit not more than 5,000 manat, payment for damage to the health of one physical entity - 1,000 manat, payment for damage to the property - 1,000 manat. According to the new law, the volume of payments significantly increased. The
payments for damage to health and life are defined at 50,000 and 5,000 manat, for damage to property - 5,000 manat. Thus, the payment on one insurance certificate is 55,000 manat. This is nine times more than before.
The official exchange rate is 0.7864 AZN/USD on Feb. 23.