Although the statistics of the recent years is pleasing - each year the number of accidents decreases by approximately 15%, where those, who celebrate Midsummer Eve, their vehicles or properties have suffered during Midsummer holidays, still in total the Midsummer holidays are rich in injuries and accidents, according to the data of BTA Baltic Insurance Company (hereinafter - BTA). Mostly damages caused to vehicles as a result of careless way of acting as well as injuries sustained, when arranging the place of celebration and carelessly celebrating holidays, cause worries.
“Tendency of accidents during Midsummer holidays does not change for several years - the owners of vehicles most often suffer losses. It is related to the intensive road traffic during pre-holidays, when the majority of those, who celebrate Midsummer Eve, go outside of towns in order to prepare for celebration. Data summarized by BTA indicate that the number of accidents in car parking lots of supermarkets, where the big inflow of people cause situations of increased risk, significantly increase during the holidays. Last year BTA disbursed approximately 100 000 euros in insurance indemnities for insured events, when damages were caused to vehicles, that were claimed during Midsummer holidays. Accidents, where the customers have sustained injuries, when celebrating holidays or preparing for them, take the second position according to the number of received claims for insurance indemnities. In its turn, the third position is taken by accidents with the immovable property that is significantly less in terms of numbers, but may cause significant losses in terms of money to the owners thereof,” tells Iveta Rijniece, Director of BTA Insurance Claims Handling Department.
Car drivers have to be careful close to supermarkets and driving along rural roads
When analysing the insurance claims received by BTA regarding damaged vehicles during Midsummer holidays, BTA has concluded that the number of accidents, where human carelessness or stress is at fault, is growing. Quite often car drivers damage their vehicles by hitting curbs as well as scraping the neighbouring car, when trying to park their vehicle at the car parking lots of supermarkets. Similarly, vehicles are quite often damaged also in well-known places – in yards of their private houses, when a car hits fencing or gates while backing out. According to BTA statistics, quite a typical reason for collision of vehicles during pre-holiday is failure to observe sufficient distance in a dense traffic.
“After Midsummer holidays a lot of the owners of vehicles have to change their windshields, because when driving the rural roads, quite often the car driving ahead or in front picks up stones, damaging the windshield of another car. Therefore drivers should remember to use appropriate driving speed and keep a safe distance when driving along gravel roads,” says I.Rijniece.
Unfortunately also third persons cause losses to motor vehicles during holidays, besides these are not only thefts. For example, last year BTA received a claim for insurance indemnity for the accident, when youth threw a bottle of glass from the window of a residential building during the Midsummer night, thus damaging the vehicle parked near the building, but in another car parking place several persons have caused serious damages to the vehicle, when walking and jumping on the roof of it on the day before holidays. Each year during holidays BTA receives also claims for insurance indemnities regarding broken side windows for vehicles and property stolen from the interiors of vehicles, therefore we invite people not to leave valuable items that may attract the attention of thieves, such as navigation equipment, video recorders and other technical equipment, in cars.
Be careful not only during celebration, but also when preparing for celebration
“Each year already few days before the holidays, when the big preparation starts, we see that the time of Midsummer Eve is full of injuries” tells Iveta Rijniece. “People go to country side in order to arrange the place of celebration, but they injure themselves, while carelessly operating with work tools, such as chopping wood or cutting grass. People acquire burns also during pre-holidays, when maintaining the territory and lighting the fire.”
According to BTA statistics, celebration of holidays in an open air is related to increased risk - those, who are celebrating, slip while walking along wet grass or stepping on wet leaves, which results not only in strains, but also severe bone fractures. Also careless compliance with various holiday traditions may end up sadly - each year BTA receives claims for insurance indemnities regarding injuries, sustained when jumping over the fire. Also Midsummer Eve’s dances on an uneven dancing “floor” in the middle of a meadow happen to cause painful moments for those, who celebrate - strains and dislocations of foot and knee joints.
Accidents with dwellings - financially the most painful ones
Although BTA receives half of claims for insurance indemnities regarding adversities with the immovable property during the Midsummer Eve’s holidays than claims for various injuries, financially the problems with dwellings cause much more significant losses to their owners.
“Most often thieves cause losses to the owners of dwellings during holidays, because they take the advantage of the time, when owners are celebrating holidays out of the town. Each year BTA receives claims for broken windows of houses and thefts of various valuable items, such as stolen jewellery or valuable working tools,” tells the representative of BTA. “Last year lightning caused several accidents at home during the Midsummer Eve. In one of the cases the television set and decoder was damaged as a result of lightning strike, but the other case caused more significant damage - the heating boiler of the house was damaged and a tiling roof of the house suffered.”
Līgas and Jāņi - wise heroes of the day
In terms of Līga and Jānis, the statistics collected by BTA on the claims for insurance indemnity received during the Midsummer holidays during the last two years indicate that Līgas celebrate their name days in a very wise manner - there is no claim for indemnity received from any girl named Līga during the Midsummer holidays. Also Jāņi celebrate their name days in a dutiful manner - in total BTA has received only seven claims for insurance indemnity from men named Jānis during Midsummer holidays of the recent two years.
BTA is one of the largest indemnity payers in Baltics. Last year BTA has disbursed an average of 398 thousand euros each business day in insurance indemnities in the Baltic States, which makes it 50 thousand euros every working hour.
About BTA
AAS BTA Baltic Insurance Company was founded in 2014, after reorganisation of BTA Insurance Company SE, performing successful division of the company according to the geographical distribution of its business operations: Baltics and rest of Europe. BTA Insurance Company SE, being a mother company of AAS BTA Baltic Insurance Company, has been successfully operating on insurance market for more than 20 years, in 2009 becoming the third biggest insurer in Baltic States. The international growth of BTA is proven by the TOP 500 of Central European Companies issued by the international auditor company Deloitte for year 2013, where BTA ranks among 50 largest insurance companies in Central Europe.
In December 2015 AAS BTA Baltic Insurance Company concluded a contract about attraction of an investor – one of the leading insurers in Europe – Vienna Insurance Group AG (VIG). The deal shall be completed after receiving all the necessary permits from the authorities, supervising the operation of the industry, which might take place in the first six months of 2016.
More information:
Agnese Grīnberga
Public Relations Manager
AAS BTA Baltic Insurance Company
email: agnese.grinberga@bta.lv
Phone: +371 67025661, mobile: +371 27828796
