Decision No. 23/2003/QD-BTC On the Issuance of Rules, Tariff Tables, and Minimum Liability Limits for Compulsory Civil Liability Motor Vehicle Insurance

DECISION

VRegarding the issuance of Rules, Tariff Tables, and Liability Limits for Compulsory Civil Liability Motor Vehicle Insurance

of the Owner

 MINISTER

Pursuant to the Civil Code dated October 28, 1995;

Pursuant to the Law on Insurance Business No. 24/2000/QH10 dated December 9, 2000;

Pursuant to Decree No. 178/CP dated October 28, 1994 of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Finance;

Pursuant to Decree No. 115/1997/NĐ-CP dated December 17, 1997 of the Government on compulsory civil liability insurance for motor vehicle owners;

Pursuant to Resolution No. 13/2002/NQ-CP dated November 19, 2002 of the Government on measures to curb the increase and eventually reduce traffic accidents and congestion;

At the proposal of the Director of the Department of Banking and Financial Institutions;

 DECISION:

Article 1. The Rules, Tariff Tables, and Liability Limits for Compulsory Civil Liability Insurance for Motor Vehicle Owners are hereby issued together with this Decision.

Article 2. This Decision shall take effect fifteen days from the date of publication in the Official Gazette and shall replace Decision No. 299/1998/QĐ-BTC dated March 16, 1998 of the Minister of Finance on the issuance of Rules, Tariff Tables, and Liability Limits for Compulsory Civil Liability Insurance for Motor Vehicle Owners. Contracts of insurance concluded before the effective date of this Decision shall continue to be implemented according to the provisions of the law at the time of contract conclusion.

Article 3. The Director of the Department of Banking and Financial Institutions, the Head of the Office of the Ministry of Finance, and the Heads of relevant units shall be responsible for supervising the implementation of this Decision./.

Compulsory Civil Liability Insurance Rules

for Motor Vehicle Owners

(Issued pursuant to Decision No. 23/2003/QĐ-BTC
dated February 25, 2003 of the Minister of Finance)

PART I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1.Scope of Application

1. Insurance enterprises and motor vehicle owners, including foreign owners operating motor vehicles within the territory of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, have the obligation to implement the compulsory civil liability insurance for motor vehicle owners.

2. The compulsory civil liability insurance for motor vehicle owners under these Rules includes:

Insurance for compensation of damages outside contracts caused by motor vehicles resulting in damage to persons and property of third parties;

Civil liability insurance for motor vehicle owners for damages to the physical well-being and lives of passengers under passenger transport contracts.

Article 2.Definitions

In these Rules, the following terms are understood as follows:

1. Third party: refers to those who suffer damage to their physical well-being and property due to the operation of motor vehicles, except for the following individuals:

Drivers and assistants on the same vehicle;

Passengers on the same vehicle;

The owner of the vehicle unless the owner has transferred possession and use of the vehicle to another person.

2. Passenger: refers to those transported on the vehicle under passenger transport contracts as specified in the Civil Code.

3. Insurance liability limit: is the maximum amount that the insurance enterprise may have to pay for damages to persons and property in each accident falling within the scope of insurance liability.

4. Intentional act causing damage: refers to a situation where a person is aware that their actions will cause damage to others but still carries out such actions, whether they desire or not, and allow the damage to occur.

Article 3.Insurance Contract

The Certificate of Insurance issued by the insurance enterprise upon request of the insured serves as evidence of the insurance contract between the motor vehicle owner and the insurance enterprise. The main contents of the Certificate of Insurance are stipulated in Appendix 1 - Contents of the Certificate of Insurance issued together with Decision No. 23/2003/QĐ-BTC of the Minister of Finance.

Article 4.Premium and Insurance Liability Limit

Insurance enterprises and motor vehicle owners must implement insurance according to the Tariff Tables and minimum insurance liability limits issued together with Decision No. 23/2003/QĐ-BTC of the Minister of Finance.

Insurance enterprises may negotiate with the vehicle owner to provide insurance according to higher tariff tables and liability limits or broader risk coverage than the Rules, Tariff Tables, and insurance liability limits issued together with Decision No. 23/2003/QĐ-BTC of the Minister of Finance.

Article 5.Insurance Validity

The validity of compulsory insurance begins and ends as stated on the Certificate of Insurance. The insurance enterprise shall issue the Certificate of Insurance only when the motor vehicle owner has paid the full premium (except in cases of written agreement otherwise).

During the validity period stated in the Certificate of Insurance, if there is a transfer of ownership of the vehicle and the motor vehicle owner does not request cancellation of the insurance contract, all insurance benefits related to the insured vehicle remain valid for the new owner.

Article 6.Cancellation of Insurance Contract

In case of a request to cancel the insurance contract, the motor vehicle owner must notify the insurance enterprise in writing at least 15 days in advance. Within 15 days from receiving the cancellation notice, if the insurance enterprise does not object, the insurance contract shall be automatically cancelled, and the insurance enterprise must refund 80% of the premium for the cancellation period, except in cases where an insurance event related to the vehicle subject to cancellation has occurred during the validity of the insurance contract.

Article 7.Responsibilities of Motor Vehicle Owners

1. When requesting insurance, the motor vehicle owner must truthfully and fully report all information in the Insurance Request Form.

2. In the event of a traffic accident, the motor vehicle owner must have the responsibility to:

2.1. Provide medical assistance, limit damage to persons and property, protect the accident scene, immediately inform the insurance enterprise to cooperate in resolving the matter. Within five days from the date of the accident (unless there is a justifiable reason), the motor vehicle owner must submit to the insurance enterprise an accident notification (Appendix 2: Accident Notification and Claim Request issued together with Decision No. 23/2003/QĐ-BTC of the Minister of Finance);

2.2. Not move, dismantle, or repair property without the consent of the insurance enterprise, except in cases where it is necessary to ensure safety, prevent further damage to persons and property, or comply with the requirements of authorized agencies.

2.3. Reserve the right to lodge complaints and transfer the claim for compensation tothe insurance company within the amount that the insurance company hascompensated, along with all necessary supporting documents related thereto.

3. The owner of the motor vehicle must be honest in collecting and providingdocuments and evidence in the compensation claim file and facilitate theinsurance company in verifying the authenticity of such documents and evidence.

4. In case of changing the purpose of using the vehicle as prescribed in the FeeSchedule and Limit of Liability for Compulsory Civil Liability Insurance for MotorVehicle Owners issued together with Decision No. 23/2003/QD-BTC of theMinister of Finance, the owner of the motor vehicle must immediately inform theinsurance company to adjust the insurance premium rate accordingly.

If the owner of the motor vehicle fails to fulfill the above responsibilities, theinsurance company may refuse to compensate partially or entirely the amountcorresponding to the damage caused by the fault of the owner of the motor vehicle.

Article 8.Responsibilities of the insurance company

1. Guide and create favorable conditions for the owner of the motor vehicle toparticipate in insurance.

2. In cases of accidents, if deemed necessary, the insurance company must closelycooperate with the owner of the motor vehicle and relevant authorities from thebeginning to resolve the accident. If necessary, the insurance company mustimmediately advance reasonable expenses within the scope of insurance liabilityto mitigate the consequences of the accident as effectively as possible.

3. The insurance company is responsible for coordinating with the public securityauthorities to collect necessary documents related to determining the cause andextent of damage of the accident within the scope of insurance liability.

4. When the compensation file is complete and valid, the insurance company mustprocess and resolve compensation within the time limit stipulated in Article 13below.

Chapter II

SPECIFIC PROVISIONS

Article 9.Insurance Liability

Within the limit of liability recorded on the Certificate of Insurance, the insurancocompany is responsible for paying to the owner of the motor vehicle the amountthat the owner of the motor vehicle must compensate under the Civil Code for damagessuffered by third parties and passengers carried on the vehicle due to the use ofmotor vehicles, specifically:

1. For personal injury:

Compensate reasonable costs for medical treatment, rehabilitation, actual income lostor reduced, care and support for the victim before death, reasonable funeralcosts... according to the degree of fault of the owner of the motor vehicle.

The owner of the vehicle and the insurance company may agree to choose themethod of payment applied according to the Table of Compensation Payment forPersonal Injury Damage (Appendix 3 - Table of Compensation Payment for Personal Injury Damage issued together with Decision No. 23/2003/QD-BTC of the Minister of Finance).

2. For property damage: compensate actual damage according to the degree offault of the owner of the motor vehicle.

3. Necessary and reasonable costs incurred by the owner of the motor vehicle toprevent and limit losses related to the accident.

The total compensation and costs mentioned above shall not exceed the limit ofliability recorded in the Certificate of Insurance and shall not exceed the actualamount the owner must compensate to the victim under civil mediation or courtdecision.

In case the owner of the motor vehicle participates in two or more insurancecontracts for the same motor vehicle, the compensation amount will only becalculated based on one insurance contract. The insurance company issuing thefirst contract is responsible for resolving compensation and recovering theequally distributed compensation amount for all insurance contracts.

Article 10. Loss Assessment

All property damage within the scope of insurance liability will be assessed bythe insurance company (unless otherwise agreed) with the presence of the ownerof the motor vehicle, third party, or legal representative of the relevant parties todetermine the cause and extent of damage caused by the accident.

In case the owner of the motor vehicle does not agree with the cause and extent ofdamage determined by the insurance company, both parties will agree to select aprofessional technical appraiser to conduct the assessment. The conclusion of theprofessional technical appraiser is the basis for determining the damage. In casethe conclusion of the professional technical appraiser differs from the conclusionof the insurance appraiser, the insurance company must bear the appraisal cost.In case the conclusion of the professional technical appraiser matches theconclusion of the insurance appraiser, the owner of the motor vehicle must bearthe appraisal cost.

In special cases, if the insurance company cannot carry out the loss assessmentrecord, it may rely on records and conclusions of competent authorities andobtained physical evidence (photographs, statements of relevant parties) to determinethe cause and extent of damage.

Article 11.Exclusions from Insurance

The insurance company shall not be liable for compensation for damages caused inthe following cases:

1. Intentional actions causing damage by the owner/driver or the person sufferingdamage;

2. Vehicles without a certificate of technical safety inspection and environmentalinspection (for vehicles required to have such certificates);

3. Drivers without a valid driver's license (for motor vehicles required to have adriver's license); drivers with alcohol, wine, beer levels exceeding current legallimits, as concluded in writing by a competent state agency, or other stimulantsprohibited by law;

4. Vehicles used for sports racing, illegal racing, test drives after repair (unlessotherwise agreed);

5. Vehicles entering prohibited roads or areas;

6. Damages with indirect consequences such as: reduction in commercial value,losses associated with the use and exploitation of damaged property;

7. Damage to property stolen or robbed during the accident;

8. War and similar causes as war;

9. Damage to special property including: gold, silver, precious stones, money,valuables such as money, antiques, rare paintings, corpses, remains.

Article 12.Claim File for Compensation

The compensation file includes the following documents:

1. Accident report and compensation request (Appendix 2 - Accident Report and Compensation Request issued together with Decision No. 23/2003/QĐ-BTC of the Minister of Finance.

2.Documents proving personal injury such as the Victim's Medical Certificate, DischargeCertificate, Operation Report, and other documents related to care and treatmentcosts; the Victim's Death Certificate, medical treatment receipts, and funeralcosts.

3.Documents proving property damage such as invoices for repairs or replacements ofdamaged property due to the accident; documents proving necessary and reasonableexpenses incurred by the vehicle owner to reduce losses or to comply with theinsurance company's instructions.

4.The police investigation conclusion on the accident; in cases where there is no policereport, compensation will be based on the Appraisal Report of the insurancecompany.

Chapter III

DISPUTE RESOLUTION

Article 13.Time limits for claims, payment, and complaints regarding compensation

1.Time limit for the vehicle owner to make a claim: one year from the date of theaccident, except in cases of delay due to objective and force majeure reasons asprovided by law.

2.Time limit for the insurance company to pay compensation: fifteen (15) days fromthe date of receipt of a complete and valid claim file, and not exceeding thirty(30) days if verification of the file is required.

In case of refusal to compensate, the insurance company must notify the vehicleowner in writing of the reasons for refusal within thirty (30) days from the dateof receipt of the compensation claim file.

3.Limitation period for initiating a lawsuit regarding compensation: three (3) yearsfrom the date the insurance company pays compensation or refuses to paycompensation. Any complaint beyond this period shall be invalid.

4.In cases where third parties or passengers under transport contracts suffer personalor property damage caused by motor vehicles insured under this policy andcomplain directly to the insurance company for compensation, the insurancecompany shall be responsible for contacting the vehicle owner to resolvecompensation in accordance with the provisions of these Rules.

Article 14.Dispute Resolution

Any disputes arising from the insurance contract, if not resolved throughnegotiation between the parties involved, shall be referred to the人民法院在越南解决。