Penalise bad drivers not old cars

IT WAS reported in the media that effective from July 1, insurance companies will be allowed to set insurance premiums for vehicles based on certain criteria like the safety features of the car and duration of the car on the road, among others.

This will disadvantage senior citizens and the poor.

Many poor people, especially those living in the rural areas where public transport is not easily available are forced to purchase old secondhand cars for their use.

Similarly, many elderly people like me who have exhausted a lot our savings after educating our children will not have money to change our old faithful cars.

There are many elderly people who have old cars but are careful drivers and have not made a single insurance claim for years.

Will this group have to pay higher insurance premiums because their cars are old models which do not have the modern safety features in spite of their clean record.

We hope that the authorities will study the new scheme and reconsider the conditions before they implement them .

Ironically, it is those with fast, modern cars who speed like for- mula one drivers who are likely to cause accidents.

It is their expensive claims that contribute to the high payout in insurance claims.

Therefore, please study the whole scheme carefully so it is fair to careful drivers and penalises those with bad records only.

In fact, the insurance companies should connect with JPJ and the police and base their insurance premiums on the record of the drivers.

THOMAS FOO Subang Jaya