Don't take latest car accident reporting rules lightly

[User12343]

If you are one of the 800,000 motorists in Singapore, take note of a new initiative that sets out new procedure you must observe from today.

 

Launched by the General Insurance Association (GIA), it requires you to report all motor accidents to your insurer within 24 hours or on the next working day.

 

It does not matter how minor the accident is, and the requirement applies even if there is no obvious damage to the vehicle.

 

The new procedure is not to be taken lightly because not complying with it will result in penalties. They include the loss of your no claim discount (NCD) and the risk of having your claim prejudiced or declined later by insurers.

 

Not surprisingly, motorists have had a lot to say about the initiative.

 

Some say it will be troublesome to have to report all accidents to their respective insurers within the stipulated period. In the past and in the absence of penalties, many motorists did not report accidents when they could make a private settlement and/or there was no damage or injury.

 

Recently, a motorist wrote to The Straits Times Forum page asking if insurers could find other ways of reducing their motor business costs rather than 'penalising' motorists with the new measure.

 

Others wonder if motor insurance premiums could be lowered in future if indeed the new measure does manage to arrest exaggerated motor claims.

 

 

Rising motor claims

 

After all, motorists have been coughing out more over the years because of rising motor insurance premiums, which have surged by around 20 per cent from a year ago. This rise was driven by the mounting motor losses the industry had been experiencing.

 

At a recent press briefing, GIA president Derek Teo highlighted the dire straits that motor insurers were in.

 

'For every dollar in premiums that we collected in the last two years, we paid out $1.20 in claims and other expenses. The current rising loss situation is not sustainable.'

 

Last year, motor underwriting losses hit a five-year high of $103.2 million.

 

Mr Teo attributed the poor results in the past two years to a price war arising from renewed competition since 2004, when the motor insurance sector returned to the black after an earlier slump.

 

It had suffered 12 years of losses, which peaked at a record $120 million in 2002 amid inflated repair claims and runaway third-party costs.

 

Given this backdrop, it is not surprising that the new initiative is backed by all insurers in Singapore.

 

Here are some frequently asked questions about the new motor claims framework, and what the insurers say:

 

 

Q: Why is the new framework necessary?

 

It is a best practice undertaken by all motor insurers in Singapore, and provides clear and standard procedures regarding what to do in the event of a motor accident.

 

When involved parties are forced to report their accidents 'fresh', the incidence of people lying and collaborating with repair workshops to inflate claims is drastically reduced.

 

This will provide motorists with a better claims experience and help contain insurers' cost of claims.

 

 

Q: Will the new framework translate into higher premiums?

 

On the contrary, it will help to contain the cost of claims for insurers. And if claims are managed well, premiums should not rise.

 

 

Q: Do I have to pay any reporting fee to the insurer?

 

No.

 

 

Q: What if there is no damage to my vehicle? Do I have to inform my insurers?

 

Yes, you have to report all accidents to your insurer no matter how minor the accident is.

 

This is the requirement even if there is no visible damage, or even if you have come to a private settlement with the other driver.

 

This is because you can never be absolutely sure that the other party will not file a claim against you later.

 

 

Q: Do I still need to report to my insurer if I do not intend to claim from any insurer or third party?

 

Yes.

 

 

Q: What happens if I choose not to report the accident to my insurer?

 

Failure to make a report within 24 hours or on the next working day will affect your NCD when you renew your motor insurance.

 

For private car owners, this means losing 10 percentage points of their NCD if they do not comply. For motorcyclists and owners of commercial vehicles, the penalty is 5 percentage points of their NCD.

 

Not reporting will also put you at risk of having your claim declined later by insurers.

 

 

Q: Will the new framework apply to all motorists?

 

Yes, the framework applies to all motorists.

 

It will be a policy condition that all motor insurers will enforce with effect from today.

 

 

Q: What if I want to send my car back to my car dealer or favourite mechanic?

 

Each insurer offers different types of motor insurance plans, some of which allow customers to use any workshop.

 

You have to check with your insurer on this point.

 

 

Q: Can I still use Idac (independent damage assessment centres)?

 

The new framework does not spell the end of Idac. There is no change to the process at Idac, which is used by some insurers.

 

 

Resolving disputes

 

Meanwhile, drivers in disputes with insurers over motor accident claims now have a venue through which to settle them under a new mediation scheme.

 

If your motor accident damage claim is below $1,000 and involves no bodily injury, you can file your complaint with the Financial Industry Disputes Resolution Centre (Fidrec) under the Fidrec-Nima (non-injury motor accident) scheme.

 

The scheme was launched last month, and is expected to help settle cases more affordably and quickly than going before the courts.

 

The scheme applies to disputes where consumers claim against an insurer that is not their own insurer.

 

Where disputes are resolved through mediation, Fidrec's services are free of charge for the consumer.

 

========================

 

What to do after a motor accident

 

If anyone has been hurt in the accident, call the police immediately.

 

Otherwise, a police report should be made within 24 hours of any accident that involves:

 

1. Damage to a government vehicle or property.

 

2. A foreign-registered vehicle.

 

3. A hit-and-run incident.

 

The parties involved should exchange particulars, including their names, identity card numbers, telephone numbers, addresses, insurers and vehicle numbers. If there are witnesses, note their contact details.

 

If you have a digital camera or camera phone, take photographs of the accident, the vehicles and the scene.

 

If you are sending the photos via a multimedia message, enter 97112758 and the vehicle number and date of accident in the following format: , .

 

You will receive an acknowledgement SMS from the General Insurance Association Record Management Centre.

 

Call your insurer's hotline for a tow truck or for further advice on how to handle the accident. Avoid all unauthorised tow-truck operators or repair workshops.

 

Report the accident and take your accident vehicle, whether damaged or not, to the approved reporting centre (provided by your insurer) within 24 hours or by the next working day.

 

Take with you the completed Singapore Accident Statement, which contains two forms, if you have it. You can also ask your approved reporting centre or authorised workshop to help you fill up the forms.

 

Avoid discussing which party is at fault. Refer all communication from the other drivers or their lawyers to your insurer.

 

Do not authorise any repair work without the consent of your insurer.

 

 

Source: General Insurance Association of Singapore

[Guyver]

Yah .... this will be in place.

 

If after this, premium still don't come down .... then they better have a good explanation.

[Ahliew]

Q: Will the new framework translate into higher premiums?

 

On the contrary, it will help to contain the cost of claims for insurers. And if claims are managed well, premiums should not rise.

 

cover car-chng, wheres the reducing premiums part?

[Contax]

liddat also good lar , big or small also must report...typical sporean - more paper work , the more the merrier.

 

also , these will really eradicate those con-man who " small matter lar...slight dent in the bumper , no need to report ,let's settle here ..."and then a month or 2 later , a letter from insurance company saying you have just lost your NCD bacause the other party claim against you .

[Sosaria]

Basically, the insurance companies are washing hands and putting all the responsibility on their clients. And this, after happily pocketing your premiums each year...

 

I guess the only way to avoid being put in such situation is to drive safe and avoid accidents.

 

Anybody in this forum who's the first to have to apply such rules , please report here and let us know how it goes...

[macrosszero]

I think it is fine to report incidents to the insurance companies. You can still inform them if you wish to claim or not to claim against your own policy or a third party.

 

What I have a question about is, if you are involved in a hit and run where your parked car has been damaged. Do you have to lodge a report even if the other car has ran off?

 

With these rules the insurance companies are going to be super-busy handling all sorts of reports of cases both big and small. What they think they may save from bogus or inflated claims they will end up spending on more administrative support staff to cope with the volume.

[W2wwong]

what if the other party refuses to exchange particulars and claims that there was no accident?

 

back to square one?

[Qaz20]

There's no mentioning of how this will help reduce thr premium..

 

I did a claim last year for my car when i was knocked by a lorry from behind..

Rear was badly damaged. changed bootlid, bumper... lamp was intact..

My front kissed a SUV due to the impact from the lorry, very minor, so the SUV owner decided to forget it. But when i made the report, it was written in it.. Cos ther's slight demage to my front bumper paintwork, so i requested for a spray job.

 

Guess what, when i see the surveyor come to see my car after the repair was completed, i was shocked to see the list includes, the rear lamp, front bumper, front headlamp, front grill, etc....

 

That's why premium are high.. And everybody in the industry knows that doing insurance claim gives good pocket $$.

 

The authority should be tackling these issues..

Years ago, they already did something to try and curb this, but it didn't work, and they just stop there??

[Gnoikj]

If the fellow refuses to give particulars, i suggest you lodge a police report at the police station...

[W2wwong]

police will ask "any injuries? any damage to govt property? foreign vehicle? no? no need to make police report"

 

then how?

 

back to square one?

[Cyberet]

take down car number, and photos at the scene of accident, and make a report stating the details, issn't that what the new rules mentioned?

 

he don't want to report, than bye bye NCD for him

Edited June 2, 2008 by Cyberet

[Cyberet]

Q: Why is the new framework necessary?

 

It is a best practice undertaken by all motor insurers in Singapore, and provides clear and standard procedures regarding what to do in the event of a motor accident.

 

When involved parties are forced to report their accidents 'fresh', the incidence of people lying and collaborating with repair workshops to inflate claims is drastically reduced.

 

This will provide motorists with a better claims experience and help contain insurers' cost of claims.

[Yoongf]

If no exchange particulars, make the report on the basis that it is Hit and Run.

[W2wwong]

before the new 'rules', accidents have to be reported in 48 hours. now they change it to 24 hours, would it make a difference? i don't think so.

 

the point is - how do we make sure the other party reports the accident? if they can claim that no accident happened (previous rule), will they not do the same now?

 

even if we report hit-and-run, the other party will still say that there was no accident.

 

we would still be at the losing end.

 

if the relevant authorities don't (cannot) enforce whatever 'rules' they come up with, we will still be back to square one.

 

did they catch those pple who inflated such claims? how many were caught?

 

these pple are only good at talking and coming up with 'rules'.

[Chongster]

if party A reports first and party B didn't report, party A's story has higher chance of being believed? maybe this will make everyone report earlier.

 

but i agree, reporting earlier does not make the report honest. it may be one of the things they need to do, but not the one and only thing that they should do.

 

the root cause is still the workshop inflating the claims. followed by those "dodgy" whiplash cases

[Guyver]

liddat also good lar , big or small also must report...typical sporean - more paper work , the more the merrier.

 

also , these will really eradicate those con-man who " small matter lar...slight dent in the bumper , no need to report ,let's settle here ..."and then a month or 2 later , a letter from insurance company saying you have just lost your NCD bacause the other party claim against you .

 

If they were to have an online reporting for drivers to make "Private Settlement" reporting, then it would have the following advantage :

 

- Encourages people to Private Settle

- Ease of reporting

- Reduces paperwork at insurer side

 

But this will only be for those who knows how to use internet ... then ok.

[Cyberet]

If i'm not wrong, the previous ruling was to report asap, and it depends on how one interpret it, anyway lets see how things go

 

Q: What if there is no damage to my vehicle? Do I have to inform my insurers?

 

Yes, you have to report all accidents to your insurer no matter how minor the accident is.

 

This is the requirement even if there is no visible damage, or even if you have come to a private settlement with the other driver.

 

This is because you can never be absolutely sure that the other party will not file a claim against you later.

 

 

Q: Do I still need to report to my insurer if I do not intend to claim from any insurer or third party?

 

Yes.

 

 

Q: What happens if I choose not to report the accident to my insurer?

 

Failure to make a report within 24 hours or on the next working day will affect your NCD when you renew your motor insurance.

 

For private car owners, this means losing 10 percentage points of their NCD if they do not comply. For motorcyclists and owners of commercial vehicles, the penalty is 5 percentage points of their NCD.

 

Not reporting will also put you at risk of having your claim declined later by insurers.

[Rncw]

i think most businesses also want to be like the petrol companies..keep going up

 

Yah .... this will be in place.

 

If after this, premium still don't come down .... then they better have a good explanation.