Algeria: Insurers to settle auto claims within 8 weeks starting Sept
Source: Middle East Insurance Review | Jul 2016
The Ministry of Finance has decided to limit the period insurers take to pay out compensation to beneficiaries in traffic accident cases to eight weeks of receiving a claim. The new rule will take effect from September.
The Ministry is also working on a schedule of uniform prices for motor spare parts, to be used in working out insurance compensation for parts damaged in accidents, said Mr Hassen Khelifati, Vice President of the Algerian Union of Insurance and Reinsurance Companies. This move would help reduce the time needed to assess the amount of damage.
Meanwhile, he said, insurers are working to resolve the backlog of vehicle damage claims that date from 2010-2015. This backlog of claims is expected to be cleared by the end of this year.
Cost of motor accidents
Road accidents killed more than 4,600 people in 2015 in Algeria, a record increase of approximately 15%, said the Algerian Press Service citing data from the National Road Safety Centre. The cost of insurance compensation amounted to EUR400 million (US$453.6 million) in 2015.
According to estimates the economic consequences of road accidents stand at between 1% and 3% of the GDP, said Mr Ahmed Nait El Hocine, Director of the Centre. Human factors, including non-compliance with the Highway Code, accounted for 90% of the motor accidents last year, he added.
EUR1 = US$1.13