Delhi LG Vinai Saxena Writes To FM Nirmala Sitharaman, Demands Higher Insurance Premiums For Vehicles Involved In Repeat Traffic Violations
Delhi Lieutenant Governor Vinai Saxena has written to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, urging her to link vehicle insurance premiums to the number of traffic violations recorded against the vehicle.
In his letter dated September 25, the LG highlighted alarming road safety statistics. According to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), India recorded over 4.37 lakh road accidents in 2022, resulting in approximately 1.55 lakh fatalities. Notably, over-speeding was responsible for nearly 70% of these accidents, while violations such as red-light jumping also contributed significantly to fatal crashes.
The LG referenced an analysis by the World Bank, which indicates that vehicles with multiple traffic violations have a 40% higher risk of being involved in fatal accidents compared to those with a clean driving record. He added that Delhi’s own accident statistics support this finding.
A 2023 report from the Delhi Traffic Police revealed that 60% of fatal road accidents involved vehicles previously fined for traffic violations, primarily over-speeding and red-light jumping. Vehicles with more than three traffic challans in a given year were found to have a disproportionately high involvement in severe accidents.
“There is an obvious correlation between repeat traffic offences and the risk of accidents,” the LG wrote.
To address this, Vinai Saxena suggested introducing a layered insurance premium system based on the frequency and severity of traffic violations as recorded in MoRTH’s VAHAN database. According to him, vehicles frequently penalized for offences such as over-speeding, red light jumping, and dangerous driving should be required to pay higher insurance premiums.
“This financial deterrent would encourage better driving behaviour,” the LG argued in his letter to the Finance Minister.
If implemented, this proposal could mark a significant step towards improving road safety by incentivizing compliance with traffic rules through insurance cost adjustments.
https://www.freepressjournal.in/india/delhi-lg-vinai-saxena-writes-to-fm-nirmala-sitharaman-demands-higher-insurance-premiums-for-vehicles-involved-in-repeat-traffic-violations
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