Insurers appreciate the amendments to the national safety plan for improved control of road users, and are ready to share information about most dangerous places to reduce the number of road traffic accidents.

In response to the news that Latvia might introduce speed cameras to register the average movement speed and automated equipment registering cases of ignoring the red traffic light, Ivo Danče, the Director of Baltic Risks Underwriting Department of BTA Baltic Insurance Company AAS, believes that both these solutions would improve road safety, as well as the overall driving culture.

“Everyone is to benefit from road traffic regulations being observed. The smoother the traffic flow on the road and the fewer opportunistic manoeuvres, the safer a road user may feel. It is no secret that many road accidents occur, when a driver attempts to manage to squeeze in an intersection when the red light has just turned on, while another, for instance, taking a left turn from the opposite direction lane, has already started the manoeuvre. When aware of being constantly watched, drivers would think twice whether to attempt a risky manoeuvre. In an ideal situation, surveillance equipment or at least its dummy replicas would be in every intersection, it would stimulate drivers to comply with the road traffic rules on a regular basis, not just when a police car is in sight,” says I.Danče, admitting that drivers should be warned about each installed speed camera or surveillance gadget by appropriate signs.

He also suggests using a critical mind to evaluate whether the already installed speed cameras have really been placed where they should be. The road accident statistics suggests that there are more dangerous road sections, where speed cameras would make to reduce speed and save people’s lives.

BTA Baltic Insurance Company AAS is open to cooperation with the police, which would be a win-win deal, BTA would willingly share its information of most dangerous intersections and road sections, which would definitely need surveillance equipment installed.

“Sure, some drivers might feel uneasy because of stricter control, but even they will come to realize its benefits when looking further. Increased traffic safety makes the accident numbers shrink. This, in turn, makes traffic less likely to jam, the traffic flow is smoother, sparing anxiety of being late to important events,” believes I.Danče.

About BTA

BTA Baltic Insurance Company is a major insurance company in the Baltic States, offering the broadest range of non-life insurance services in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. The largest shareholder of BTA is Vienna Insurance Group AG, one of the leading insurers in Europe with 190 years of experience in the insurance field. More than 50 companies in 25 countries constitute the group, which employs 24,000 employees. Vienna Insurance Group AG is a clear leader in its core markets in Europe maintaining high rating of financial stability – Standard & Poor’s A+ (stable outlook), with a listing on the Vienna and the Prague Stock Exchange.

Additional information:
Elīna Rasmane
Marketing and Public Relations Department Director
BTA Baltic Insurance Company AAS
e-mail elina.rasmane@bta.lv