Private insurers claim success in stopping spread of fake car insurance

MANILA, Philippines - Insurance firms claimed the existing insurance system has succeeded in curbing the proliferation of fake compulsory third party liability (CTPL) policies for motor vehicles. Citing local insurance data, the Philippine Insurers and Reinsurers Association (PIRA) said the Certificate of Cover Authenticating Facility (CoCAF) recorded 5.487 million authentic CTPL policies from July 2007 to the same month this year. "This number represents the number of registered vehicles in the country. This shows that there are no more unaccounted certificates of cover that go through the Land Transportation Office," PIRA said in a statement. It added that a total of P2.69 billion worth of premiums were collected over the one-year period since the CoCAF system was established. In presenting the data, PIRA said there is no need to replace the existing motor vehicle insurance system, as sought by a Finance Department order transferring the CTPL business from private insurers to the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS). “In short, the existing system is already working, so why replace it with the GSIS system?" the said. PIRA has been fighting for the sole right to issue car insurance to 5.5 million vehicles nationwide. On July 25, the Makati City Regional Trial Court issued a 20-day temporary restraining order (TRO) to prevent GSIS and the DoTC from taking over the CTPL business. The Court of Appeals likewise issued a 60-day TRO on the government's move to transfer the CTPL venture to GSIS. On August 5, however, the Land Transportation Office (LTO) started offering the GSIS insurance to motorists. "We are not forcing motorists to get the GSIS insurance. We ask them to choose what they want," LTO-Diliman Registration Chief Honorio Quiambao earlier said. - GMANews.TV