Compulsory motor third-party liability insurance (MTPL) must be taken out from July 16 for micro-mobility devices, such as Segways or electric scooters; some insurers have already published their tariff rates, while others are still awaiting the final government decree, informed a consulting expert from Grantis Hungary Zrt. to MTI on Tuesday.
Patrik Veres indicated that the regulation does not apply to vehicles operated solely by human power, such as electrically assisted bicycles or e-mopeds driven by persons with disabilities, nor does it apply to skateboards.
According to the expert, for non-human powered vehicles such as electric scooters, whether insurance is necessary depends on the device’s net weight and design speed.
Under the law, MTPL insurance must be taken out for electric scooters whose weight exceeds 25 kilograms and whose design speed reaches 14 kilometers per hour, or even if the device’s weight is less than 25 kilograms but its design speed exceeds 25 kilometers per hour – he explained.
He added that the user is also considered the operator under the law for vehicles without license plates.
Electric scooter providers are expected to enter into some form of fleet contract with an insurer – he speculated.
According to Grantis, current annual MTPL tariffs for electric scooters range from a few thousand to several hundred thousand forints.
The reason for the large difference is that several insurers classified non-human powered vehicles into the other category before the final Ministry of Finance decree, similar to test-drive cars, which have significantly higher insurance premiums – Patrik Veres informed. According to the expert, these high premiums are expected to change with the publication of the decree.
The amount of insurance premium is determined by the operator’s age and the location of the device’s use at several insurers – he noted.
(MTI)
