[size=75:21ivquqb]Sofia echo 11 January 2010

Police and car insurers to couple computer systems

Drivers with a history of causing accidents will face higher insurance premiums, Bulgarian-language daily Standart said on January 11 2010.

After June 1, the computer systems of Bulgaria's traffic police and the Guarantee Fund, a national insurer database, will be linked. As a result, the police will be able to spot immediately if a car has Motor Third Party Liability Insurance, Standart said.

New insurances would be added to the system at the time premiums are taken out, so the system would be up to date and backdating insurances would no longer be possible, Standart quoted Lev Ins managing director Stefan Sofianski as saying.

Traffic police had complained before that it is impossible to fine motorists found driving without the required insurance papers on them, as they would take out an insurance policy and backdate it.

The new system would allow the introduction of a bonus-malus system. Insurance companies would be able to check the driving records of applicants for insurances. Those with a clean record would be ineligible for discounts, while those who had caused traffic accidents in the past would face increased insurance premiums, Standart said.

A working group currently investigated best practices in bonus-malus systems to see which system would be most appropriate in the Bulgarian context.

This is a great move in the right direction we already do this in the uk and I'm sure it will help stop people driving without insurance

sarah

Well, yes, it is a good initiative, thumbs up that it will be implemented. There are way too many crazy & irresponsible & drunk drivers around here on the roads and there should be a way to correct them. I hope they would also propose an amendment to the traffic law which will ensure all cars are in good tech condition too.

Petar

Yes your right Petar they will need to get it all right including the way they do their MOT's from what I have read it’s just a kick of the tyres and if the lights work then its a pass in some places anyway and then there is the drink driving which is a problem in most countries and I'm sorry to say even here in the uk it’s a bad as anywhere so let’s hope that yes they get is all sorted out

sarah