WHY IS OSAGO PRICING INCREASING?
Motorists beware! The cost of MTPL policies will increase by 30% from next year, warns the National Automobile Union (NAU). Is this really true?
“We know for sure that insurance companies want to increase prices for MTPL policies,” Anton Shaparin, vice-president of the National Automobile Union, told kp.ru. – Most likely, they will follow the path of revising the coefficients – territorial coefficients will be revised, and, probably, power coefficients – they will tell us that everyone struggles terribly with powerful machines.
According to Shaparin, the price of the policy will increase by 30%.
“As an argument for the increase in the cost of the policy, we will be told about the increase in the price of spare parts,” Shaparin suggested. – But in reality, spare parts have not become more expensive, but in the case of some items, on the contrary, they have even become cheaper, due to the increase in parallel imports of scarce parts. For example, windscreens.
At the same time, the expert pointed out that the prices of spare parts do not have a significant impact on the cost of the policy or repairs.
“Only up to 5 percent of cars are sent for repair under compulsory motor liability insurance; the rest is paid by insurance companies in cash, according to the Central Bank’s guide,” Shaparin said. – We looked at how much the bumpers of Lada Granta, Solaris and BMW Five cost in these reference books. And everywhere the price is reduced three times compared to the market price. For example, in the reference book the price of a bumper for a Grant is almost 4.5 thousand rubles, despite the fact that it also needs to be painted. And in the reference book it is estimated at about 1,500. And the wear factor is also applied. For a car that is 3-4 years old and about 100 thousand kilometers, this coefficient will be 40%. And we will receive compensation for the bumper in the amount of 800-900 rubles.
Parts prices do not have a significant impact on the cost of the policy or repairs.
Photo: Svetlana MAKOVEEVA. Go to Photobank KP
POLITICS IS CHEAPER IN BELARUS
According to Shaparin, the cost of compulsory liability insurance in Russia is too high.
“In Russia, the insurance policy is many times more expensive than, for example, in Belarus, where the prices of spare parts and maintenance costs are absolutely comparable,” says the expert.
For example, for a 2020 Kia Rio with a 122 hp engine, a Russian owner over 25 years old and with two years of driving experience will pay between 9,100 and 13,866 rubles. And for a Belarusian, the same will be about 3 thousand in terms of Russian rubles. The maximum payment in Russia is 500 thousand rubles, and in Belarus it is twice as much.
According to Shaparin, the increase could be announced as early as December of this year.
IT CAN GROW, BUT NOT STRONGLY
Komsomolskaya Pravda has appealed to the Russian Union of Automobile Insurers. They have denied rumours about the upcoming increase in the price of compulsory motor liability insurance by 30 percent.
“We do not yet see any reason for a sharp increase in the cost of the policy,” Sergei Efremov, deputy CEO of RSA, told kp.ru. – Now the cost of the policy is stable and the prices for spare parts have also stabilised. We doubt that it can grow by 30 percent…
Well, maybe not 30 percent. But will it grow or not?
“The average premium may grow, but we do not see the need for such a sharp increase,” Efremov said cautiously.
To understand it: the insurance premium is what is popularly called the cost of compulsory automobile liability insurance.
According to the expert, the possible increase is due to the fact that payments for insurance claims have increased.
“Average payments for insurance cases under both CASCO and OSAGO increased by 10-15 percent,” Efremov said. – This happened because spare parts became more expensive and the cost of repairs increased.
The possible increase is due to the fact that payments for insurance claims have increased.
Photo: Yulia PYKHALOVA. Go to Photobank KP
WHY IS OSAGO EXPENSIVE?
As for comparing the cost of MTPL policies in Russia and Belarus, the expert considers it incorrect.
“There is no comparison between the situation in Russia and Belarus,” Efremov said. – Belarus is a small and compact state compared to Russia.
But the level of motorization (the number of cars per 1,000 people) is approximately the same, in Belarus it is even slightly higher.
“But the conditions there are completely different: there are no such large enclaves as, for example, Moscow and St. Petersburg, which are much larger than Minsk and where traffic density and accident rates are much higher,” says Efremov. – There are more cities with a population of one million in Russia (16 versus two, ed.), which offer a significant number of insurance cases. The fact is that in Russia the cost of repairs is also higher.
