According to the information compiled by BTA Baltic Insurance Company (BTA), cars most often have technical problems thus letting down their owners on Fridays and Mondays, when roadside assistance is called as much as two times as often as on other weekdays. Besides, only 10% of assistance provision cases have been due to road traffic accidents, most often the causes of calls have been regular technical problems of cars.

The analysis of data of the dynamics of use of the Roadside Assistance service, provided by BTA, revealed that it is but 10% of cases when BTA MTPL and CASCO insurance policy holders request assistance because of road traffic accidents, whereas in 90% of cases assistance is required for solving regular problems. The most current Monday morning problems are starting the car that has not been used over the weekend, while the assistance on Fridays most often is required for “holiday drivers” – daily urban commuters by public transport or bicycle.

“We provide Roadside Assistance to private as well as corporate cars. As we engage in problem solving together with our customers, we notice the increased knowledgeability of people, also in terms of higher expectations and demands towards the range of services and the provided customer service quality. Customers have come to realize that the insurer is capable to provide the necessary support in solving daily problems as well, and the number of MTPL insurance policy holders, improving their compulsory policy cover by the ancillary Roadside Assistance service, keeps increasing” explains Anda Savļenko, the Head of BTA Customer Support Service.

The most regular problem – car cannot be started

According to the information compiled by BTA, Roadside Assistance keeps becoming an increasingly popular service and it was used last year by 14% more than in 2015. The most current trouble – engine cannot be started due to technical reasons or because of poor car battery. Insurer’s assistance is also sought in cases, when something was broken, flat tyre – deflated or punctured, wheel has come loose, there is smoke from the car, makes strange noises, or cannot be entered. In 75% of cases, assistance is provided to CASCO insurance policy holders, in 25% - to MTPL insurance customers.

Winter months – the hottest

“For Roadside Assistance team, the winter period is the busiest. The number of emergency calls for help to start up the car considerably increases. There are also a lot of cases, when assistance is required, because the car has stuck in snow heaps, or drifted on ice and swerved and got a flat tyre on curb. Often there are calls because of frozen door locks and owners unable getting in,”  says Anda Savļenko.

Statistical data are a clear indicator to winter being the busiest time – the number of calls regarding necessary assistance on the road is by 27% higher during winter months than on average. A particularly busy moth each year is January, when there are 41% more calls than on average. The January of 2016 was the “hottest” months in recent years, when assistance was provided to twice as much customers than an average month during a year.

“Considering the fact that the average air temperature in last January was by 3.9 Centigrade lower than the long-term normal, and a number of cold records were made, it is quite a logical outcome. We should also keep in mind that there was a lot of snow, and assistance was required to many of those, which had got snowbound or slid into snow heaps. To compare – winter in this January was a lot calmer and the Roadside Assistance was by required to 40% fewer customers than in January a year ago,” explained Anda Savļenko.

Wet weather brings problems with electronics, including car alarm. Spring, in turn, is notorious for punctured tyre related accidents. Being aware of the particularly poor condition of roads in springs, BTA also offers the BTA CASCO Potholes insurance cover for additional protection of its customers.

Technical assistance requested by day, evacuation after traffic accidents by night

The majority of calls are received during the light hours of the day, when the problems solved usually pertain to the technical condition of a vehicle, while the most characteristic causes for calls during the dark hours are road traffic accidents, including collisions with animals.

Also characteristic for the dark hours of the day are calls related to theft and vandalism. For instance, a car’s window glass got smashed and the hole needs to be well mended by film.

Roadside Assistance required abroad as well

BTA Roadside Assistance is provided abroad with increased frequency, this is due to the effective territory selected for the insurance policy. Most often technical assistance has been required in Poland, Germany and Finland, although it has also been provided to BTA customers in Ukraine, Norway, Austria, France and other countries outside the Baltic States this year.

“We find it very important to be able to help our customers, travelling abroad by car, and each time, when there are car-related problems abroad, we look for a solution and provide the necessary assistance – we contact car repair shops, take care of evacuation, taxi services, and even hotel accommodation, when necessary. For instance, once there was a case when a school bus in Norway got broken and we furnished accommodation in a hotel for all the passengers. For another client, we took care of transportation of his broken car even to another country – the car went out of order in Italy, while the nearest car repair shop was in San Marino, which in fact is another country. Sometimes problems to customers in such situations arise because of the language barrier, as well as communication peculiarities of some countries, in such cases clients particularly appreciate the aid provided by the insurer. More often communication problems are observed in Germany and France. And, customers should keep in mind to select appropriate insurance territory, when obtaining insurance, so that insurance protection would cover the country of destination,” emphasizes Anda Savļenko.

About BTA

BTA Baltic Insurance Company (hereinafter – BTA) is one of the leading insurance companies in the Baltic States, providing all types of non-life insurance services in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. BTA is also one of the largest indemnity payers in the Baltics – in 2016, BTA disbursed an average of 300 thousand euros each business day in insurance indemnities in the Baltic States or approximately 38 thousand euros every business hour.

The largest shareholder of BTA is Vienna Insurance Group AG, one of the leading insurers in Europe. More than 50 companies in 25 countries constitute a group with a solid brand, with 190 year experience in the insurance field and close cooperation with customers. VIG employs 23,000 employees and is a clear leader in its core markets. VIG is a group with the best rating of all companies in the ATX, the leading index of the Vienna Stock Exchange, with a secondary listing on the Prague Stock Exchange.

More information:
Linda Upeniece
Marketing and Public Relations Department Director
BTA Baltic Insurance Company AAS
Email: linda.upeniece@bta.lv
Phone: +371 67025676, mobile: +371  26756841