Moscow City Hall sets up cameras against accidents

The city authorities provided insurers with access to 700 video cameras on the Moscow Ring Road. This should speed up the registration of an accident and exclude collisions with cars standing in the middle of the road. The authorities have been looking for a solution to this problem for three years already, and the Russian government was previously instructed to deal with this problem. Insurance companies supported the idea and are ready to settle losses under the new system, independent experts see risks for motorists and have little faith that the video will somehow change the situation.

Auto insurers have begun to conclude contracts with the Moscow Traffic Management Center (TSODD) and receive information from video recording cameras on the Moscow Ring Road, Deputy Executive Director of the Russian Union of Auto Insurers (RSA) Sergey Efremov said yesterday. Yesterday, the conclusion of such an agreement was announced in Alfastrakhovanie, earlier it was done by Absolut Insurance. In TsODD “Kommersant” said that they had prepared a single agreement on the provision of video at the request of insurers, 29 companies have already joined it, they account for 89% of all OSAGO policies in the capital region.

The DCDD began to provide insurers with access to video to solve the problem of so-called repeated accidents – collisions with cars and people during the processing of minor accidents that occurred 20-30 minutes before. SDA, we recall, obliges participants in incidents in which there are no victims to photograph or film the environment and remove the cars. In practice, shooting and paperwork take a lot of time, as a result, someone at full speed crashes into a standing vehicle. Sometimes drivers are waiting for the traffic police, being afraid to draw up everything on their own, because they are afraid that the insurer will refuse to pay based on the pictures. In 2020, the problem was discussed in the government, but no solution was found then. In April 2022, Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin instructed the Moscow government, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the RSA to develop a “comprehensive plan” for solving the problem by July 1. At the end of 2022, signs began to appear on the roundabout warning of accidents ahead.

The pilot for providing video to insurers, according to Kommersant, was planned to be launched as early as November 1, but the launch was delayed due to various approvals: it took a lot of time to prepare an agreement with insurers. The TsODD Kommersant was assured that the Moscow Ring Road was completely closed by a video review: there are 700 cameras along the ring road. Not only insurers, but also participants in the accident will be able to receive the video: within five days after the accident, the center explained, they will need to write to the organization’s mail, attaching documents about the accident and a copy of their identity card, in response they will receive a video.

“After the completion of the pilot stage, the experience gained can be extended to other roads in Moscow and regions with heavy traffic, as well as to federal highways equipped with cameras,” Sergei Yefremov said yesterday. AlfaStrakhovanie wants to use cameras to settle losses not only under OSAGO, but also under Casco. “Such a program must be implemented without fail in all million-plus cities, regional capitals and wherever there is an increased accident rate,” said Alexander Kharagezov, director of the Alfastrakhovanie insurance payments department. “This will help minimize errors when considering accident claims, and will also make work with clients in this area as transparent as possible.”

It is not known how many losses were settled using video from the cameras. The TsODD said yesterday that it had already provided 57 videos at the request of companies. The experts interviewed by Kommersant are nevertheless skeptical about the prospects. Lawyer of the movement “Freedom of choice” Sergei Radko emphasizes that the rules still oblige participants in the accident to immediately stop and move the car only after fixing the damage. If this is not done, it will be a violation. “Drivers must be sure not only that there are cameras at the scene, but also that they are in good condition and recorded the incident,” says Mr. Radko. “Until there is a story with the settlement of losses based on video, drivers will play it safe,” says Grigory Shukhman, an expert on photo and video recording systems. “Moreover, drivers do not know how well the moment of the accident was visible on camera, whether there were any extraneous cars in the viewing area. In any case, after an accident, drivers will have to get out of the car and coordinate their further actions.”

The TsODD leases video cameras on the Moscow Ring Road from the Spetsdorproekt company under a contract for 4.6 billion rubles. (concluded at the beginning of 2022), she is also responsible for the performance of the equipment.

Ivan Buranov