Expansion of Military Vehicle Compensation Scope... Reducing the Burden on Drivers

[Asia Economy Reporter Yang Nak-gyu] The compensation coverage for military vehicle insurance will be significantly expanded in the future. By adding a legal cost support special clause to the military vehicle insurance contract conditions and expanding compensation for passenger injury treatment costs, the burden on driver soldiers is expected to decrease.

According to the Ministry of National Defense on the 8th, the contract conditions for military vehicle insurance have been improved through the expansion of injury treatment costs and legal cost support. The passenger injury treatment cost has been increased from the previous 5 million KRW to 10 million KRW to enhance the level of treatment compensation. A new legal cost support special clause has been added to cover criminal settlement fees of 30 million KRW, attorney fees of 5 million KRW, and fines of 20 million KRW.

The injury application grade for 12 major negligence accidents has also been expanded from the previous 7 grades to 14 grades, allowing compensation for minor injuries as well.

The special clause for self-vehicle damage, which was previously optional within the budget range of each unit, has been expanded to all vehicles except combat vehicles. Combat vehicles are excluded because repairs and parts procurement are possible within the military.

The 'Magic Car Emergency Dispatch' towing service, which was previously limited to within 10 km, has been extended to 50 km, and the annual usage frequency has also been increased from 5 times to 10 times.

The Ministry of National Defense stated that it is promoting an amendment to the 'Special Act on Traffic Accident Handling' to protect driver soldiers, so that even when the state compensates, prosecution cannot be filed against the driver soldier who caused the accident.

Military vehicle insurance started in 1984 as a private contract between the Ministry of National Defense and the Military Mutual Aid Association, but switched to public bidding in 2011. Since 2016, it has been changed to a three-year contract through the Armed Forces Transportation Command and the Public Procurement Service, and this year's contractor was selected as KB Insurance Company, following 2016.

According to an analysis of the military vehicle insurance operation status over the past five years by the Ministry of National Defense and the insurance company, the number of insured vehicles has steadily increased, but the number of accidents has rather decreased. The accident rate has decreased from about 16% in 2016 to below 10% in the past three years.