Manifold growth in sales of e-CMTPL policies continues in Armenia

ArmInfo.  In Armenia, the  share of online-colcludedcompulsory motor third party liability  policies (e-CMTPL) in the total number of agreements increased 3-fold  by September 2020 - up to 14% from 5% a year earlier. According to  the Armenian Motor Insurers' Bureau in January-August 2020, the  number of CMTPL contracts concluded online reached 82,690, having  increased 2.5-fold in y-o-y terms. At the same time, the total number  of concluded CMTPL contracts decreased in y-o-y terms (January-August  2020 to January-August 2019) by 16.8%, amounting to 600,271.  The  volume of insurance premiums collected on them amounted to 13 billion  drams, with a y-o-y decline of 8, 2%. And this happened amid y-o-y  decline of 2.9% in the number of vehicles with compulsory motor third  party liability insurance policy. During the reporting period, there  were 617,032 CMTPL contracts that entered into force, the number of  which decreased by 16.9% in y-o-y terms, and the volume of insurance  premiums on them amounted to 13.9 billion drams with a y-o-y decline  of 8.6%. The number of CMTPL contracts terminated during this period  decreased by 59.8% - to 11,312, under which 183 million AMD premiums  were returned or are subject to return. To note for comparison that a  year earlier, in January-August 2019, the growth of vehicles with a  CMTPL contract by 13% was accompanied by an increase in CMTPL  contracts by 33.5% (and e- CMTPL - 3.6-fold) and the volume of  collected premiums - by 25.2%.

The average insurance premium per one CMTPL contract increased by  10.4% in y-o-y terms to 21,644 drams. According to ArmInfo analysts,  the main factor in such a high popularity of e-CMTPL is the discount  applied (5%) when concluding contracts online, and another reasons is  the shift of employees to a remote work during the emergency period  amid the coronavirus pandemic. 43,883 applications for insurance  compensation were submitted in January-August 2020, which is 12.4%  less than the same period in 2019. And the volume of payments on them  amounted to 9.6 billion drams, with a y-o-y decline of 4.1%.   Moreover, 17,626 applications turned out to be in cases of simplified  road traffic accidents (according to the European protocol) with a  y-o-y decline of 24.1%, for which the volume of compensations paid  amounted to AMD 1.3 billion (a y-o-y decline of 28.3%), and the  average amount of one payment was 70 984 AMD (accelerating the annual  decline to 5.5%). As for general insurance indemnities, the average  amount of one payment made 218.360 thousand drams with a y-o-y growth  of 9.4%. It should be noted that since August 2020, a higher  threshold of damage - 200 thousand drams (against the previous 100  thousand drams) came into force for insured events under the European  protocol. A year earlier, in January-August 2019, the following was  recorded: an increase in claims for insurance compensation by 17.7%,  an increase in the volume of payments by 13.2% (with a decline of  3.8% in the average amount of one payment), and the number of  applications under the European protocol increased by 4.3% with an  almost unchanged volume of payments (with a 4.2% decline in the  average amount of one payment).

The loss ratio for CMTPL for January-August 2020 decreased to 61%,  while a year earlier in the same period there was an increase from  71% to 72%.

According to the results of January-August 2020, there are 550 843  vehicles with a valid CMTPL contract.  Their number in y-o-y terms  decreased by 16 640 units. In IC "Rosgosstrakh Armenia" 180 808  vehicles are insured, in Nairi Insurance - 111 335 units, in INGO  Armenia - 84 084 units, RESO - 65 457 units, Sil Insurance -58 436  units, Armenia-Insurance - 50 723 units.

It should be noted that in Armenia since March 16, as part of  measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, a State  of Emergency was introduced, which was extended monthly and was  lifted from September 12, while maintaining restrictive security  measures. In this regard, a temporary ban was imposed on many types  of activities in the first month of the state of emergency (including  restaurants, cafes, bars, casinos, hotels, canteens, shopping  facilities and industries not related to food and medical products).  As part of the ban, the work of public transport (including the  metro) was suspended in the republic and the movement of other  vehicles (except for taxis) was restricted, international aviation,  rail and bus services were limited. The ban was partially lifted in  the second half of April, then from May 4, the list of permitted  types of economic activity was further expanded in order to ensure  the vital activity of the economy, and from May 18 the ban was lifted  almost completely. From the same day, public transport (including the  metro) and many catering and services facilities began to work, but  so far the activities of international air, rail, and bus  communication remain limited. But since September 2, restrictions on  entry and exit to Armenia through the air borders have been lifted,  and bans on communication only across land borders remain.

To recall, in Armenia, the system of registration of insurance claims  under the European protocol in the CMTPL market was introduced from  March 2016, initially with a threshold of damage up to 50 thousand  drams, increased to 100 thousand drams from September of the same  year, with a subsequent increase from August 2020 to 200 thousand  drams. In 2017, the transition of CMTPL processes to a single window  system and a single platform for the insurance market began under the  "Armenian Single Window for Automative - ASWA" project, within the  framework of an agreement concluded in 2014 with the French Bureau  Veritas (Bureau Veritas Inspection Valuation Assessment and Control).  From that moment on, they began to gradually introduce: the  conclusion of insurance policies for CMTPL through a single window  platform (October 2017); On-Line sales of policies (November 2017);  purchase of policies through payment terminals with the function of  accepting cash cash-in (December 2017). And in February 2020, another  automation of the CMTPL process followed - the registration of  insurance claims under the European protocol through the ASWA mobile  application.