Allow me to raise a few concerns after the implementation of the Non-injury Accident Report Scheme by the Traffic Police and the General Insurance Association of Singapore (GIA) on May 1, 1999.
The scheme removed police involvement in injury-free accidents. Since then, the fear of being fined or charged by the Traffic Police is likely to have diminished.
Previously, many motorists were cautious about filing a police report after a traffic accident because of the likelihood of being fined, slapped with demerit points or charged with a traffic violation.
The overhanging worry of official penalties often persuaded them to settle matters privately without the involvement of insurers and lawyers.
But since lodging a police report is no longer required under the Non-injury Accident Report Scheme, there may be a greater tendency among motorists to file a false claim - of their own accord or on the advice of others. This may be why settling motor claims has become a big headache for insurance companies.
The scheme has also created an opportunity for more parties, such as lawyers, to be involved in the matter than is necessary. Honest and good drivers are unnecessarily penalised by having their no-claims discounts removed after their insurers end up paying claims to dishonest parties to avoid high litigation costs.
The general assumption in most traffic accidents is that someone must have violated a traffic rule and hence caused the traffic accident. If this is so, are the Traffic Police inadvertently letting errant motorists off the hook by removing themselves from the equation?
My view is that under the old scheme, more errant motorists would have been penalised. Given the absence of potentially damaging penalties, does the current scheme discourage defensive driving, especially among the younger and newer drivers? Perhaps the GIA should take up the slack in the investigation of accidents, which was previously handled by the police, and refer traffic violations to the Traffic Police for investigation and enforcement.
This will heighten the level of consciousness on safe and defensive driving.
