1. The Role of the Finnish Bureau in the Management and Settlement of Claims and the Organisation and Structure of Reinsurance Protection
Moscow
Janne Jumppanen
Director
Law and Insurance Unit

2. OPERATIONAL STRUCTURE
MOTOR VEHICLE OWNERS
(approx. 3 million insurance policies)
FINNISH
MOTOR
INSURERS’
CENTRE
MINISTRY OF SOCIAL AFFAIRS
AND HEALTH
(Insurance Department)
legislation
INSURANCE SUPERVISION
AUTHORITY
supervision and general directions
13 MOTOR INSURANCE COMPANIES
administration of insurance
and claims matters
STATE-OWNED
VEHICLES
State Treasury
PUBLIC COURTS
actions for damages
TRAFFIC ACCIDENT BOARD
body for appeal
Application for
compensation
Claims report
INDEMNITY
INSURANCE REHABILITATION
Motor Insurers’ Centre,
Federation of Accident
Insurance Institutions,
Federation of Employment
Pensions Institutions
CLAIMANTS

3. Finnish Motor Insurers’ Centre Traffic Accident Board
Insurance companies
Finnish Motor Insurers’ Centre
Traffic Accident Board
Insurance Rehabilitation Association

4. OFFICE STRUCTURE OFFICE
FMIC = Finnish Motor Insurers’ Centre,
Green Card Bureau and
Guarantee Fund
PIC = Patient Insurance Centre
PIP = Patient Insurance Pool
PhIP = Pharmaceutical Insurance Pool
EIC = Environmental Insurance Centre
EIP = Environmental Insurance Pool

5. General Assembly Board of Directors
THE FINNISH MOTOR INSURERS’ CENTRE, GREEN CARD BUREAU AND GUARANTEE FUND
General Assembly
Board of Directors
Tariff Division
Claims Division
Insurance Division
Medical Supervisors
Insurance Companies’ Committee
for Automobile Repairs (VAT)
Insurance Companies’ Traffic
Safety Committee (VALT)
Managing Director
Office

6. THE FINNISH MOTOR INSURERS’ CENTRE
GUARANTEE FUND
GREEN CARD BUREAU
INFORMATION CENTRE
COMPENSATION BODY
CLAIMS REPRESENTATIVE

7. Responsibilities of the Finnish Motor Insurers’ Centre
are set forth in a decree:
act as a coordinating and consultative body for its member companies;
grant motor liability insurance policies to cover foreign vehicles;
maintain international contacts;
settle claims for accidents caused by vehicles which are unidentified, uninsured, foreign or covered by vehicle-in-transit insurance, and claims for reindeer injuries caused by vehicles;
collect penalty premiums for uninsured vehicles;
issue instructions promoting insurance business;
make risk premium calculations;
work for road safety;
compile claims statistics from all motor insurers;
issue guidelines harmonising claims handling.

8. Role of the Finnish Motor Insurers’ Centre
national Green Card Bureau and the Guarantee Fund
primarily liable for claims made for accidents caused by uninsured, unidentified and foreign vehicles in Finland
grants motor liability insurance (frontier insurance) to foreign vehicles for temporary use in Finland
temporary motor liability policies for short-term vehicle transits, some 100,000 policies a year
acts as the Information Centre and the Compensation Body in accordance with the fourth Motor Liability Insurance Directive

9. Green Card Bureau
All Green Card Bureaux operate with the recognition and approval of their Governments.
Each Green Card Bureau has two functions:
as a "Bureau of the country of the accident", it has responsibility in accordance with national legal provisions for Compulsory Third Party Motor Insurance for the handling and settlement of claims arising from accidents caused by visiting motorists.
as a "Guaranteeing Bureau" it guarantees certificates of Motor Insurance - ("Green Cards") which are issued by its member insurance companies to their policyholders.
National bureaux cooperate on the basis of the Internal Regulations signed bilaterally between each of them.
(Source:CoB)

10. Internal Regulations – handling of claims
Article 3 - HANDLING OF CLAIMS
3.1 When a Bureau is informed of an accident occurring in the territory of the country for which it is competent, involving a vehicle from another country it shall, without waiting for a formal claim, proceed to investigate the circumstances of the accident. It shall as soon as possible give notice of any such accident to the insurer who issued the Green Card or policy of insurance or, if appropriate, to the Bureau concerned. Any omission to do so shall however not be held against it.
If, in the course of this investigation, the Bureau notes that the insurer of the vehicle involved in the accident is identified and that a correspondent of this insurer has been approved in conformity with the provisions in Article 4, it shall forward this information promptly to the correspondent for further action.

11. Internal Regulations – authority of the Bureau
3.3 The Bureau is authorised to settle any claim amicably or to accept service of any extra-judicial or judicial process likely to involve the payment of compensation.
3.4 All claims shall be handled by the Bureau with complete autonomy in conformity with legal and regulatory provisions applicable in the country of
accident relating to liability, compensation of injured parties and compulsory insurance in the best interests of the insurer who issued the Green Card or policy of insurance or, if appropriate, the Bureau concerned.
The Bureau shall be exclusively competent for all matters concerning the interpretation of the law applicable in the country of accident (even when it refers
to the legal provisions applying in another country) and the settlement of the claim. Subject to this latter provision, the Bureau shall, on express demand, inform
the insurer, or the Bureau concerned, before taking a final decision.

12. COMPENSATION PRINCIPLE OF FULL COMPENSATION
Compensation is paid in accordance of actual costs occurred from the traffic accident and based on written documents.
Compensations for loss of income and pensions (!) are usually paid as an annuity. Immaterial compensations are usually lump sum payments.
DIRECT RIGHT OF ACTION
A third party has direct right of action against an Insurer.
LIMITS
Bodily injury: no upper limit
Material damage: 3,3 million euro

15. Accidents caused by Russian vehicles in Finland
The transit transport is heavy, some 2250 trucks on Finnish roads each and every working day. From this amount the transit transport involving the transport of cars and sport utility vehicles (SUV) via Finnish ports to Russia involves some 660 car transporters (loaded and empty). The continuous growth of heavy traffic increases accident risks and the probability of a major accident.
On Monday, 6 February 2006 a vehicle combination (car transporter) on its way to Russia and a coach coming from Kotka to Helsinki collided. There were nine passengers on the coach, two of whom died in the accident. One person was seriously injured, five escaped with minor injuries and three were uninjured.
Practically all Russian vehicles entering Finland enter with a valid Green Card issued in accordance with article 7.3 of the Internal Regulations
There is only one major claims handling company on the market

22. Finnish vehicle causing an accident abroad
Primary responsibility lies with the insurer of the vehicle
If it does not pay, then the Bureau of the country of accident will issue a guarantee call according to the Internal Regulations
FMIC will try to persuade the company to pay
If it does not pay, FMIC will have to pay the Guarantee Call
According to the Rules of FMIC other companies on the market will then have to pay the claim according to market share
Reinsurance of the insurance company, not the FMIC

23. Excess of loss reinsurance agreement
Agreement between the Catastrophe Pool of Finnish Motor Insurers and the Finnish Motor Insurers’ Centre (FMIC) on behalf of itself and on behalf of the Member companies of the Pool and the Reinsurers
the classes of business covered on behalf of the FMIC:
Motor Third Party Liability Insurances for temporary transportation
Loss caused by uninsured and/or unidentified vehicles
liability emanating from Motor Third Party Liability in accordance with the E-Pool (The FMIC is exclusively liable for indemnities exceeding EUR 1,345,503)
the priority is EUR 2,500,000 any one loss occurrence, any one event
the limit is unlimited any one loss occurrence, any one event
reinstatements: unlimited free

24. Excess of loss reinsurance agreement
In cases where claims have to be settled according to the law of another country, the treaty covers the liability up to the limit of the law of that country
Special limit for Germany
In the event of any other Green Card related country requiring an increased limit (exceeding the Green Card limit) this increased limit shall be automatically covered under the programme.
Some standard exclusions used in other programs are not in use in the FMIC programme (Finnish Motor Insurance is very wide in cover)

25. Frontier insurance
All vehicles imported in Finland for temporary use must be covered by frontier insurance in cases where
-         the vehicle is registered in a country that is not party to the Green Card Uniform Agreement
-         the vehicle is not covered by a valid green card
Frontier insurance is granted by the Finnish Motor Insurers’ Centre and it is also available from customs offices.  Frontier insurance is in force in the whole of the European Economic Area (EEA) and in Switzerland.
The Nordic Frontier Insurance Pool (E-Pool), which comprises the national bureaux of Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden, grants frontier insurance (motor liability insurance) to cover vehicles registered abroad and imported to the country for temporary use

26. Finnish Motor Insurers’ Catastrophe Pool
The Finnish Motor Insurers’ Centre and companies who have joined the Finnish Motor Insurers’ Catastrophe Pool have made an agreement on the allocation of costs arising from catastrophe claims among the pool members. The member companies assume costs in respect of amounts by which the total claims cost exceeds the pool limit reported by individual companies. Part of the claims provision has been reinsured.
Until the year 2000, all Finnish Companies were members of the Pool
Currently there are three companies remaining