About MTPL (RCA) insurance

General information related to MTPL insurance

• Calculation of the MTPL policy price and discounts granted

  The insurance premium for compulsory domestic motor third-party liability insurance is set and updated at least once a year by the National Commission for Financial Markets (NCFM), approved by the Government through Decision No. 318 of March 17, 2008.

  To calculate the price of the MTPL policy for a specific client, the insurer will apply to the base premium the correction coefficients established by the NCFM depending on the following factors:

  • the age of the insured and their driving experience
  • the insurance period, to which two other coefficients are added, established by the decision of the supervisory authority: the amount of the insurer's actual expenses and the amount of the profit margin included in the loading factor of the base insurance premium
  • the legal status of the insured – natural person or legal person

  • the territory where the vehicle is used – rural or urban area
  • the place of registration of the vehicle
  • the technical characteristics of the vehicle – vehicle type, engine displacement, number of seats
• What is Bonus-Malus?

  The Bonus-Malus system is a system by which the insured is placed in one of the bonus classes (which leads to a reduction of the insurance premium) or in one of the malus classes (which leads to an increase of the insurance premium), depending on the insured's history during the reference period.

  Drivers will be penalized when they cause an accident by paying a higher MTPL premium upon renewal, while drivers with no incidents will be rewarded with discounts. The maximum penalty leads to doubling the price set in the insurer's rate grid, while the maximum discount is 50% of the tariff.

  The operating principle of the Bonus-Malus system is as follows: initially, the person (by IDNP) is checked in the contracts database. If, in the last 12 months, the person was found in any insurance contract as the insured, the bonus-malus class assigned to them under that contract is extracted, being considered the initial class. Subsequently, the person is checked in the claims database.

  If, in the last 12 months, the person is not found to have been involved in any road accidents for which insurance compensation was paid, the person will be assigned the next class clearly higher than the initial one, and when calculating the insurance premium they will benefit from a 5% discount, the discount reaching up to 50% in 10 years, if the insured has not caused any accident during that entire time.

  If an accident occurred during the last insurance contract, the premium increase is applied as follows: for one accident, the premium will increase by 10%, for two accidents by 20%, and it can even double if the insured caused 4 or more accidents during the previous year.

  Also, natural and legal persons will be insured according to different criteria. Thus, in the case of natural persons, the bonus-malus coefficient will not depend on the number of vehicles owned. It will be established based on the person's insurance history and will be used for all contracts for a period of 12 months.

  For legal persons, the bonus-malus system is applied separately for each vehicle.

• Refund of the MTPL insurance premium

  If you have sold the vehicle or deregistered the vehicle from the state register, you can request the insurer to refund the insurance premium for the remaining period.

  Holding an MTPL insurance policy is a mandatory requirement for all vehicle owners. Driving an uninsured vehicle is prohibited and punished with a fine. However, in some cases, the policy already issued becomes unnecessary for the insured, in which case they can recover the money spent on it. What these cases are and how the refund procedure takes place – examining these aspects will be of interest to all vehicle owners. If you have sold the vehicle or deregistered the vehicle from the state register, you can request the insurer to refund the insurance premium for the remaining period.

  Documents required for the refund of the premium for the remaining insurance period:

  • the MTPL insurance policy;
  • a copy of the document certifying payment of the MTPL policy (receipt/check);
  • the owner's identity card;
  • the original or certified copy of the new registration certificate or other proof of transfer (sale-purchase contract, donation contract, etc.);
  • as applicable: proof of the vehicle's deregistration from the State Register of Transport).

  The right to a refund is lost if a claim file is in progress or a claim has been paid on the policy in question.

  The termination of the insurance contract results in the cessation of insurance protection from the date of termination and the refund by the INSURER of the insurance premiums for the period until the expiry of the contract, with the deduction of actual administrative expenses.

  The manner of refunding the insurance premium is established individually by the insurance companies. Depending on the time at which the insured requests the return of the insurance premium, certain standard procedures are established, which are MANDATORY for the insurance broker:

  • if the contract was issued in the current month and has not entered into force, the termination procedure is quite simple. The insured must appear personally at the broker's office, submitting a request to the insurance company, requesting the termination of the compulsory MTPL insurance contract, specifying the reason why they want to terminate this contract. At the same time, the insured must request in writing from the insurance broker the refund of the insurance premium;
  • if the contract was issued in the current month but has already entered into force, the termination procedure is a bit more complex. Thus, the insured must come personally to the insurance broker's office, submit a request to the insurance company where they will also specify the reason for wanting to end the contractual relationship. Subsequently, the insurance sales consultant will contact the insurance company to establish the percentage of deductions from the insurance premium, the amount of administrative expenses, and what part of the premium is returned to the client by the broker;
  • if the MTPL contract was concluded in the previous month, or in a month other than the current one, the insured will have to contact the insurance company directly with a request for termination and return of the remaining premium, since at the end of each month the broker transfers the collected premiums to the insurance company's account, which makes it impossible to collect the premium from the broker's office.

  For more details, you can contact the call center operators Rapidasig.md.

• I don't use the car, do I need MTPL insurance?

  If you own a vehicle registered in the Republic of Moldova, you are obliged to purchase an MTPL policy, even if the car is not being used. According to Law 106, art.4, all natural and legal persons who own or use vehicles subject to registration on the territory of the Republic of Moldova are obliged to conclude an MTPL insurance contract. Otherwise, drivers risk fines between 1500 and 3000 lei if they do not buy an MTPL policy. Even if it is an unused vehicle that stands abandoned, there is a risk that it may catch fire or move from its place if not parked properly, damaging other vehicles, and it may also cause other losses, material damage, and bodily injuries.