RIYADH:ÌýMore Saudis areÌýcarelessly driving withoutÌýinsurance.
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The percentage of people reluctant toÌýinsureÌývehicles in the Kingdom is high, NajmÌýInsuranceÌýServices Chief Executive Officer, Muhammad Al-Sulaiman said during an interview on Saudi Television.
The reason behind this was a lack of motor insuranceÌýawareness and motorists considering it as a kind of luxury or an addition to life rather than a necessity and a basic part of car ownership, he said.
Although it is a law in the Kingdom to purchase insurance, firm application of the regulations, some of which are still in the developmental stage to support the expansion plays a role in the low take-up of insurance policies, he added.
Al-Sulaiman pointed out that in 2020, the General Traffic Department suspended the issuance of periodic inspection for a temporary period, and a significant increase in the renewal ofÌýinsuranceÌýpolicies was noted during this time.
No one today can own a car without a carÌýinsuranceÌýcertificate,Ìýso this is a very important matter,ÌýFaiz Alhomrani, a financial market analyst told Arab News.
"I think that the reluctance ofÌýinsuranceÌýmay be in the comprehensiveÌýinsurance market.ÌýIt's weird why there is reluctance in insuring cars as in the Kingdom as it is a must to have insurance when you buy or sell a car, so most probably this is coming from the young university students who can't afford it," he said.
However, he added that third-party liabilityÌýinsuranceÌýhas a relatively high prevalence in the Kingdom.
According to Al-Sulaiman, with an integratedÌýinsuranceÌýrate, the prices of policies may reach less than 50 percent of the current price, and raisingÌýinsuranceÌýawareness and increasing the sale and demand for policies would go some way in helping to reduce prices.
NajmÌýInsuranceÌýServices covers 75 to 80 percent of the Kingdom's "cases", he said, referring to accidents.
