“In 2010, the average increase in the price of motor liability coverage was 4,8%. In 2011, however, the estimated increase is 5%”. The president of ANIA said, Aldo Minucci, received today in a hearing in the Senate. Minucci explained that “in 2011 the frequency of claims decreased, probably in connection with the reduction in circulation, determined in turn by the increase in the price of petrol. But the technical results should be improved. If the technical improvements were to be confirmed by the 2011 financial statements, in the current year, a stabilization trend in the price of motor liability is likely".
However, there are sectors in which, according to the president of ANIA, it would be appropriate to intervene. For example, it would be necessary to "curb the speculative practice" of reimbursements even for minor injuries and "issue the table for the economic evaluation of serious personal injury". Thanks to these measures, "the price of motor liability could drop significantly".
As to the black box to be inserted in the cars to offer cheaper policies, Minucci agrees with the provision, but the device should be "standard" - and not paid by the companies, as recently established by the government liberalization decree -, because the "costs of installation" and "its disassembly" are "very significant". Ania also requests that the reduction in prices for those who accept the black box is also linked to the "behavior of the policyholder after an initial period of operation of this contractual form".
Finally, the Axa chapter. Even if the French company were really interested in Fondiaria-Sai, for Minucci "there would be nothing to fear", also because "Axa is already on the Italian market and it seems to me that, given how the operation is set up, there is no field no foreign operator. After that, competition is free and if they have the capital and economic dimensions, which they do, there's nothing to be afraid of. After all, they are our associates”.
Here are the other points touched by Minucci in his hearing at Palazzo Madama:
- Compensation in specific form. According to the Ania, theThe current text is imprecise in the part in which it regulates the effects of the refusal of specific compensation by the injured party. In particular, it does not contain a precise reference to apply the 30% reduction. “It would be necessary to fill this gap, providing that the pecuniary compensation cannot exceed the cost that the company would have incurred with the direct repair of the vehicle.
- Anti-fraud rules. Minucci emphasizes the need to set up a public agency with extensive investigative powers. The president of ANIA explains: "The establishment of this agency would represent a turning point in the fight against fraud and would allow us to achieve two objectives: reduce insurance costs and promote legality and the development of the economy".
- Obligation to present the proposals of at least three companies. Emphasizing that in Italy the motor liability offer is varied and capable of adapting to different needs (for example, those who prefer the Internet or those who want a more personalized service with the assistance of an intermediary), Ania points out how the the penalty envisaged for failure to comply with the tariff comparison is "very high". "It seems to us that this sanction is abnormal and disproportionate and should therefore be drastically reduced," says Minucci.
- Rates. Addressing this very hot topic, Minucci does not hide that “pFor a more significant reduction in prices, however, it would be necessary to have a more decisive impact on the cost of compensation". And it points in particular the index on the damage to the person ": it would be necessary to provide that the damage to the person for minor injuries referred to in article 139 of the legislative decree 7 September 2005, n. 209, is compensated only following a coroner's check that visually or instrumentally ascertains the existence of the lesion. The table for the economic assessment of serious personal injury foreseen six years ago by article 138 of the Insurance Code and on which the government has recently received the opinion of the Council of State should also be issued. With these two interventions, the price of motor liability could drop significantly".
