The National Insurance Commission has stated that it will procure some 5,000 ‘GoTa’ phones for Motor Traffic and Transport and Division (MTTD) officers as part of efforts to curb the menace of vehicles with fake motor insurance stickers plying our roads.

According to the Commissioner of Insurance, Justice Yaw Ofori, the move will first see some 200 ‘GoTa’ phones deployed in its pilot phase of the Motor Insurance Database (MID) initiative.

“Were looking at getting 5,000 ‘GoTa’ phones and on a pilot base we have started with 200 phones and as time goes on, we will increase the numbers and distribute them to all the 16 regions for now with the busiest areas receiving more the supplies"

“The police are ready to assist us to enforce the law. All the police officer needs to do is to scan the QR code of the sticker or scan the driver’s license number with the 'GoTa' phone and he/she gets the information about the vehicle”

Justice Ofori speaking in an interview with www.ghanaweb.com on January 23 said the commission in collaboration with the MTTD of the police service, will soon mount road blocks and check insurances on vehicles across the country.

“We advise the public to be on the outlook for people who are selling insurances using the old stickers because every insurance that you get now should be an electronic sticker which should come with an acknowledgement or confirmation when you purchase the insurance,” he said.

The Commissioner assured that the software for the Motor Insurance Database (MID) along with the information that it will obtain, will not be shared with anyone or company.

“The information in the database is not shared with any other insurance company, every insurance company has got its own portal and the information they see is what pertains to that insurance company. Brokers and agents allowed to sell policies can only go into that insurance companies’ portal through a password given to them by the company so the issue of data protection is well taken care of,” he concluded.

Information available however suggests that there about 40 percent of vehicles in Ghana not insured with a chunk having fake motor insurance.

The National Insurance Commission’s data for 2018 indicates that there is an alarming gap between the number of cars that have been registered by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) compared to the number of cars that have been insured by insurance companies in Ghana.

Motor Insurance Database (MID) initiative

The NIC on January 22 issued a statement directing all insurance companies which provide motor insurance to end the issuance of manual insurance stickers.

The Commission explained that insurance and brokerage firms are to sign onto the NIC's Motor Insurance Database (MID) or risk facing sanctions with effect from January 20, 2019, to curb fake stickers and ensure safety of lives and property.