Motor Insurance - FAQs
Some questions and answers concerning motor insurance
What should I do in the event of an accident?
It is important that you react quickly and do the right thing:
- Stop immediately, and secure the site of the accident.
- Provide first aid to injured persons, call for an ambulance and the police.
- Exchange data (names, addresses, insurance details, vehicle registration numbers) with any other party involved in the accident.
- Write an accident report and, if possible, take pictures.
- Report the accident to the insurance company within one week, stating the facts.
A piece of advice: Use the European Accident Statement (EAS) form
What is the European Accident Statement (EAS form)?
The European Accident Statement (EAS) is an insurance form; available free of charge, the EAS serves to standardize and simplify the handling of accident claims. The form includes all information needed by your insurer for the further processing of any claim. It is recommended that you complete this form following any accident, as well as forward a signed copy to your insurance company. The completed EAS is certainly not an admission of fault, but provides your insurance company with a detailed account of the circumstances of the accident. In addition, any party that did not cause the accident can use the form to claim their losses from the erring party’s insurer. A claimant need not wait until others involved in the accident have reported the incident to their own insurers.
What exactly is a “Wechselkennzeichen” - a "multi-vehicle registration"?
In Austria a single pair of license plates can be used for up to three registered vehicles. Such multiple-registration plates must always be mounted on the vehicle that you intend to drive. They may be issued for two vehicles of the same category (e.g. two motorcycles) but only if the format of the license plates is the same. Thus it is not possible to use such plates for a car and a motorcycle.
Due to an accident which was not my fault, my windscreen was damaged. Will the motor insurance policy also cover the costs of a replacement vignette?
Yes, the other person’s third-party motor insurance will meet the costs for your replacement vignette. To do this, take off the damaged one (or parts of it) and the vignette section to present to the insurers.
I have bought myself a motorcycle. What must I watch out for with regard to the insurance?Motorcycle insurance policies function on the same principles as car insurance. In addition, as well as the legally mandatory third-party liability cover (without which you will not receive your vehicle registration), you should also conclude a passenger accident insurance policy (for motorcycles also a pillion passenger policy). In the event of injuries with long-term damage, both you and your passenger will be covered, regardless of the question of blame. This means that you will receive benefits even if you caused the accident yourself, and you will not need to wait until the question of liability has been resolved, which can be a long drawn-out and tedious business (an exception to this is if the accident was caused by gross negligence). Moreover, the benefits from the passenger accident cover will be paid in addition to other compensatory damages payments.
You should also consider whether you want to use your motorcycle all year round or only during the hot weather. If you put your motorcycle in mothballs during the winter, you can deposit your registration plate with a vehicle licensing authority approved by your insurers, and so save money on your insurance premiums.
Is it efficient to raise the minimum sum insured of the third-party motor insurance?Yes, bodily injuries are often very high, as a consequence the minimum sum insured is eventually not enough. With small additional premium the minimum sum insured can already be raised.
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