June 30, 2021 - Recently the European Parliament and Council reached a provisional agreement regarding motor insurance regulations that will formally excludes electric bicycles.
The European Parliament Committee (IMCO) had initially proposed the exclusion of e-bikes for motor insurance in 2019. The directive will now have to be formally approved by Parliament and Council.
Once approved, the directive will enter into force 20 days after its publication in the EU Official Journal. The new rules will start to apply 24 months after the entry into force.
The amended insurance rules are designed to provide more protection, transparency and smoother cooperation throughout the EU.
The result is better protection for injured people when accidents occur in any EU member state, including domestic victims of an accident caused by a driver from another EU country.
Victims of accidents will also be protected if a liable party’s insurance company goes bankrupt, as the new rules require national compensation bodies to meet costs arising from such cases.
“It was high time to clarify motor insurance rules, so that Europeans are better protected and treated equally in the EU when accidents occur and when insuring their vehicles.
“We have made sure that people are compensated also for road accidents where the insurance company goes bankrupt, and created new tools for all citizens to be able to compare prices, tariffs and coverage from insurance providers.
“With this political agreement we have additionally managed to curb absurd overregulation of motorsports, e-bikes and given member states the tools to exclude mobility scooters, kids’ toys or lawnmowers,” commented Dita Charanzová (Renew, CZ), Vice President of the European Parliament since 2019.
Read the official press release here.
