WATCH the way you drive. Soon, vehicle insurance premiums will shoot up depending on the number of traffic violations one is charged with. The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has called for the institution of a nine-member Working Group to examine and recommend linking of motor insurance premiums with traffic violations.
It is a global practice to link violations with premiums, but India did not consider it till it implemented the latest Motor Vehicles Act. TL Alamelu, member, IRDAI, said that linking insurance premiums to traffic violations would reduce road accidents and change the behaviour of drivers.
The idea came about after a high-powered committee for traffic management in the National Capital Territory asked IRDAI to examine the concept of linking insurance premiums with traffic violations. Though the Motor Vehicles Act falls in the Concurrent List, it is for the states to decide how to implement it. But insurance companies are not going to let go of the new rule as it would lead to less insurance claims. Careful driving would mean fewer accidents.
However, vehicle owners are not amused. Gurvinder Singh, a Delhi resident, told India Legal: “The new rules that impose stiff fines are okay, but tying traffic violations to insurance premiums is a bit too much. No one is asking the government what it is doing with the revenue that it is getting from traffic fines. It should be improving the conditions of roads and employing more traffic personnel to help bring discipline on the roads.”
The group is studying international norms to figure out how India can implement it. Once its recommendations come in, a pilot project would be launched in the capital to examine how to implement the new formula of fixing insurance premiums. The group comprises officials of the Delhi Traffic Police, Insurance Information Bureau of India and other private sector general insurance companies.
This story is from the October 21, 2019 edition of India Legal.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the October 21, 2019 edition of India Legal.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
PIL, Difficult To Swallow?
In a recent ruling, the Bombay High Court lamented the increasing number of frivolous public interest litigations being filed in courts and echoed the sentiments of the Supreme Court that such litigations are the bane of the judicial system. Is there any way to restrict their misuse?
Till Infertility Do Us Part...
The Calcutta High Court slammed a husband for initiating divorce proceedings due to his wife's infertility and asked him to be a pillar of support for her. Courts have often taken an empathetic view in such matters
IS THAT LEGAL?
Ignorance of law is no excuse. Here are answers to frequently asked queries regarding matters that affect us on a day-to-day basis
The Big Lie
In America, The Big Lie is an idiom used by Donald Trump's opponents and the media to describe his constant gripe about election fraud. Now, it seems more suited to another Republican, Congressman George Santos (right), who has been facing growing calls to resign after he admitted fabricating parts of his resume and biography since his election in New York last year.
Flying into the Sunset
Over 50 years since the first and original jumbo jet, the Boeing 747, took to the skies and revolutionized air travel, the last of the legendary aircraft (right) was delivered to a freight charter company, bringing down the curtain on one of aviation's most successful products.
Star Crossed
Actor and producer Alec Baldwin is a Hollywood legend, having starred in a range of movies, award winning TV sitcoms, and theatre. He was most recently seen in Mission Impossible Fallout, which is an apt description of his current situation.
Walkouts in the UK
An estimated half a million workers have gone on strike, shutting down thousands of schools, public transport and border disruption. It is the biggest day of industrial action for more than a decade.
Myanmar's Misery
Two years after the military coup ousted the elected government led by Aung San Suu Kyi, the brutal crackdown by the junta on so-called \"insurgents\" and civilian protesters has reached a new level with the use of air strikes, a new and deadly tactic in the ongoing civil war.
AMERICA'S ANGST
From messy, divisive politics to a series of mass shootings, and now black officers brutally beating another black man to death as seen in bodycam videos, America's domestic convulsions are cause for serious introspection
JUSTICE LEAGUE
There are few judicial appointment procedures in the world that are completely bereft of the overarching presence of either the executive or the legislature, or both. In the end, the judge is left with all the powers vested in him/her by the constitution to uphold the rule of law, within an atmosphere of external influences
