RCA insurance will also be mandatory for certain scooters and electric bicycles / Changes to car insurance, adopted by Parliament

The plenary session of the Chamber of Deputies adopted, on Wednesday, the draft RCA law by which certain electric scooters and bicycles, which are not currently subject to registration or registration, will also come under the scope of compulsory insurance. The project also brings changes related to the suspension of the RCA contract, new compensation limits or the possibility of RCA verification through the network of CNAIR cameras.

The draft law adopted on Wednesday by the Chamber of Deputies, the decision-making body, transposes Directive (EU) 2021/2118 of the European Parliament into legislation and was voted in the form approved by the Government at the end of December 2023.

This after all the amendments adopted by the Senate or proposed by the deputies to this bill were definitively rejected by the specialized committees of the Chamber of Deputies.

Which electric scooters will need RCA

Not all e-scooters or e-bikes will need RCA, only those with a maximum design speed of more than 25 km/h or those with a curb weight of more than 25 kg and a maximum design speed of more than 14 km/h.

This is because in the draft law, the term “vehicle” will be redefined as follows:

• a) any means of transport on land with its own propulsion with a maximum constructive speed greater than 25 km/h; or
• b) any self-propelled means of transport on land with a weight greater than 25 kg and a maximum design speed greater than 14 km/h;
• c) any trailer intended for use with the vehicle referred to in letter a) or b), regardless of whether it is coupled or uncoupled;
• d) tram”

Other RCA changes

The draft law also establishes minimum liability limits covered by RCA insurance according to European regulations, respectively:

• For material damage caused in one and the same accident, regardless of the number of injured persons, the compensation limit is set, for accidents, at a level of 6,434,740 lei;
• For bodily injuries and deaths, including non-pecuniary damage caused by one and the same accident, regardless of the number of injured persons, the compensation limit is set at a level of 31,926,210 lei.

As regards the RCA insurance control method, the use of electronic RCA insurance control devices in traffic will be allowed, without stopping the vehicles, as long as the GDPR legislation is respected.

Also, the new legislation provides for the introduction of a standardized standard at European level regarding the attestation of the insured's history of claims covered by RCA.

According to the draft law adopted by the Parliament, the insured will be able to request in writing to the RCA insurer the suspension of the effects of the RCA contract during the suspension of the vehicle's registration.

During the entire period of suspension of the effects of the RCA contract, of vehicle registration, the vehicle is immobilized in a private space, outside the public domain. Failure to fulfill this obligation represents a violation of the RCA insurance obligations, constitutes a misdemeanor and is sanctioned with a fine from 1000 lei to 2000 lei and withholding of the vehicle registration/registration certificate until the RCA rental document is presented.