The number increased by almost 10,000 accidents (or a 15.3% increase) compared to 2017. For 2018, PBUK estimates that insurance companies paid more than PLN 1.3 billion for the damages caused by motor insured Poles outside the country borders.
Germany (~51.7% share), France (~6.9%), Italy (~6.8%) and Great Britain (~6.3%) were the countries where most of these accidents happened, these 4 countries totaling about 72% from the total number of insured accidents.
Over 38,900 accidents happened in Germany, more than 5,200 accidents in France (up from 4,500 accidents in 2017), about 5,200 in Italy (increasing y-o-y from 4,400) and around about 4,600 accidents were caused in Great Britain (decreasing from 4,800 accidents in 2017).
Mariusz WICHTOWSKI, President of PBUK, commented:
"In recent years, there has been a gradual increase in the number of events abroad. It is an outcome of intense migration, the inability to adapt to different traffic rules on foreign roads, as well as the aptitude of driving vehicles. This translates into the successively increasing financial burden on the Polish insurance market for damages caused outside Poland by drivers of vehicles carrying national number plates (...)"
The number of accidents caused by uninsured Polish vehicles increased as well, from 415 cases in 2017 to 493 cases in 2018 (+18.8%), the highest number in the past 8 years. PBUK paid PLN 9 million from its own funds for uninsured cases in 2018, noticeably less than PLN 12 million in 2017 (-26.9%).
WICHTOWSKI added:
"The proof of impunity that grows among our motorists is the fact that more and more of them take to such irresponsible behavior as traveling on foreign roads without third-party liability insurance. If they cause an accident abroad without a valid insurance policy, they will suffer all the financial consequences. They will have to pay for the repairs of the damaged property, for the treatment and rehabilitation of injured people, and sometimes even for their continued medical care."
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