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More and more drivers, especially young and inexperienced ones, transfer their cars to their parents’ or grandparents’ names in order to pay less for mandatory car policies. We are thus talking about an economy of several hundred lei every year. It is a double-edged solution, say the specialists consulted by the Observer, because in the case of repeated accidents, the rates for RCA will rise sharply.
By Mădălina Chiţac on 07.02.2023, 20:13
Mădălina Chiţac, Observer reporter: Following the bankruptcy of the City Insurance company, RCA insurance prices increased by 50 percent, and even doubled in some cases. Now, drivers pay, on average, more than a thousand lei for mandatory insurance. A substantial amount, which some drivers are not willing to pay all at once, so they turn to the RCA in installments. And after negotiating with the insurer, they end up paying the policy in several installments.
Daniel Scarlătescu, Salfin conciliator: You can negotiate, you can reach a maximum of 10 installments to pay.
However, we must be careful to pay the installments on time, otherwise we risk that the insurer will cancel the policy and we will be fined. In order to benefit from the lowest price at RCA, insurance specialists come up with some advice.
Dorel Duţă, president of UNSICAR: The ideal recipe is to buy a car with not very high power. Have a good history and, when you go to buy your insurance policy, ask the broker for a comparative offer from all insurance companies.
Viorel Vasile, CEO of the brokerage company: There is a possibility that the prices offered by insurers are above the reference rate. As soon as there are 3 prices higher than the reference rate, then with the help of the broker or directly at BAAR, a request is made and the possibility of issuing at a special price is obtained.
The recommendation is to buy the RCA online
Also, the recommendation is to buy the RCA online.
Valentin Ionescu, ASF director: The average commission is around 10% for intermediaries. 10.5%, according to our data. In online, it can be a few percent less.
Another trick is that when we have an accident with minor damage, we compensate the person we hit.
Viorel Vasile, CEO of the brokerage company: Otherwise, next year, instead of going to a bonus class, you will go to a malus class. And instead of getting a discount, you will get an increase.
Not a few are those who, for a cheaper RCA, choose to transfer the car to a more experienced person, in a better bonus class.
Driver: Considering that it’s my father’s…he falls into that category, that he didn’t have any accidents. I only have about 6 years of experience and my age.. So this is a solution to pay less at RCA. Yes, I think it is frequently practiced here.
Daniel Scarlătescu, Salfin conciliator: There is this tendency to transfer the car to the name of the grandmother, the father. In the end, it’s a market economy and everyone tries to pay as little as possible.
Recently, however, the bonus-malus system is no longer felt when we buy the policies, because they all cost more. For example, a driver who went from class B0 to B2 should have benefited from a 10% discount. Except that, in fact, he pays 2% more than last year.
