Beijing Financial Regulatory Bureau: Leading the development and application of intelligent driving car insurance, compatible with all levels from L2 to L4

On March 29, the Beijing Financial Regulatory Administration announced that it was the first in the country to launch the development and application of commercial auto insurance for intelligent connected new-energy vehicles. The related dedicated insurance products will be optimized and upgraded on the basis of existing new-energy vehicle auto insurance, to achieve unified compatibility across all levels of intelligent connected new-energy vehicles from L2 to L4.

据知情人士透露, compared with existing commercial motor vehicle insurance (hereinafter referred to as auto insurance), the new product pricing will overall remain stable, and will be adjusted to an appropriate extent in line with changes in coverage responsibilities. Going forward, as experience data is accumulated and technology advances, factors such as the capabilities of automakers in smart driving technology will also be taken into account in the insurance pricing system.

Specifically, the person in charge of the Beijing Financial Regulatory Administration said that for L2-level driver-assistance vehicles, the dedicated products in the initial stage will mainly be applicable to new-energy new vehicles. After purchasing a new vehicle in Beijing, owners can choose to buy the dedicated products or existing auto insurance products on their own. Automakers and the insurance industry will complete system upgrades and data exchange at that time, and the Beijing Insurance Industry Association will release, in batches, the automakers and specific vehicle models to which the dedicated products apply.

For L3 and L4-level autonomous driving vehicles, dedicated products may be used for vehicles that carry out tests in the Beijing area in accordance with laws and regulations or have obtained formal permission to operate on the road. The person in charge said that as operating data for dedicated products and underwriting and claims experience are accumulated, the program will be gradually expanded to cover more scope, so that more vehicle owners can purchase dedicated products as soon as possible.

In recent years, the intelligent connected automotive industry has developed rapidly, and cutting-edge technologies such as intelligent driving have been widely adopted. This has changed risk factors, scenarios, and loss types of traffic accidents, and existing auto insurance can no longer accurately match the unique use scenarios of intelligent connected vehicles and losses of the soft- and hard-ware equipment involved.

The person in charge of the Beijing Financial Regulatory Administration pointed out that the reason dedicated products continue to use the existing auto insurance product framework is mainly based on considerations such as legal consistency, protecting the rights and interests of victims, and empowering innovation in the industry.

“Years of practice have shown that the existing auto insurance product framework and traffic accident handling model operate steadily and effectively, and that the relevant road traffic management measures and supporting initiatives are already relatively well established. When dedicated products follow the auto insurance product framework, they remain consistent with the Civil Code’s provisions that traffic accident liability involving a motor vehicle should be borne by the motor vehicle party. This can effectively balance the demands of all parties.” The person in charge said. At the same time, it is conducive to efficient and timely compensation for traffic accident victims, supports the maximum rapid resolution of disputes over traffic accidents, and avoids issues such as the possibility that when pursuing product liability for smart driving systems, the liability subjects may be diverse and the causes complex, and the time needed for assessment and appraisal may be lengthy, leading to victims being unable to receive timely compensation relief.

At present, the Beijing Financial Regulatory Administration is working jointly with the China Insurance Industry Association, the China Society of Actuaries, and major insurance companies to form a special working group. The group will pool industry resources to develop dedicated product policy terms in a concentrated manner, carry out premium rate calculations, and set rates in a scientific and reasonable way. Meanwhile, it will establish a cross-industry data exchange mechanism with the China Financial Computerization Research Institute (i.e., China’s insurance data and systems provider), to promote insurance companies to upgrade their information systems and ensure that dedicated products can be issued and sold as well as handled efficiently in claims.

In addition, the Beijing Insurance Industry Association organizes each insurance company to solidly carry out all preparations for product implementation. It will study and formulate unified industry standards for underwriting and claims practices, strengthen professional training for practitioners, and conduct end-to-end simulation tests.

A wealth of information and precise analysis—exclusively on the Sina Finance app

责任编辑：曹睿潼