Editorial · February 20, 2023
Motorbike Insurance in Vietnam: Mandatory Cover Explained
Motorbike insurance in Vietnam is a legal duty for every owner. The cover is called compulsory civil liability insurance. It pays other people when your bike hurts them or damages their property. It does not pay for your own bike or your own injuries.
This guide explains who must buy it, what it pays, what it costs, how long it lasts and how to check a policy before you ride.
What the law says
The rule comes from Decree No. 03/2021/ND-CP, signed by the Government on January 15, 2021. It came into force on March 1, 2021. It replaced two older decrees, No. 103/2008/ND-CP and No. 214/2013/ND-CP.
The decree covers motor vehicles used on the road. That list names motorcycles, mopeds and electric mopeds. The person who must buy the cover is the "motor vehicle user," meaning the owner or someone the owner has legally put in charge of the bike.
The Ministry of Finance set the money details in Circular No. 04/2021/TT-BTC, signed the same day and in force from the same date.
Sources: Decree No. 03/2021/ND-CP, English text; Circular No. 04/2021/TT-BTC, English text
What the cover pays for
The cover pays for harm done to third parties. A third party is anyone outside your bike, such as a pedestrian, another rider or a driver. It also covers the health and life of passengers on your bike.
The Circular sets two limits for a motorbike:
For injury or death, the insurer pays up to VND 150 million per person in each accident. For damage to property, it pays up to VND 50 million per accident.
The decree also speeds up help for victims. When an accident falls inside the cover, the insurer must pay an advance within 3 working days after it is told. The advance is 70 percent of the claim for a death and 50 percent for an injury that needs emergency treatment.
Sources: Circular No. 04/2021/TT-BTC, English text; Decree No. 03/2021/ND-CP, English text
What it costs
The Ministry of Finance fixes the yearly price for each vehicle type. For motorbikes, Annex I of the Circular lists two prices:
A bike of 50 cc or less costs VND 55,000 a year. A bike above 50 cc costs VND 60,000 a year. An electric moped also costs VND 55,000.
These are the base prices. The decree lets an insurer raise a price by up to 15 percent for a vehicle with a record of accidents. For a policy that is not exactly one year, the price is the yearly price times the days covered, divided by 365. A policy of 30 days or less uses the yearly price divided by 12.
Many sellers also offer extra cover for the rider, such as personal accident cover. That is a separate product. It is optional and it is not part of the compulsory policy.
Sources: Circular No. 04/2021/TT-BTC, English text; Decree No. 03/2021/ND-CP, English text
How long a policy lasts
For motorcycles and mopeds, the shortest policy is one year. The longest is three years. The dates are printed on the certificate. Cover starts and ends on the dates shown there.
Shorter terms exist only in special cases. One is a foreign bike that is in Vietnam for less than a year. The decree says the policy is then shorter than one year.
If you sell the bike during the term, the decree says the benefits for the old owner's liability stay valid for the new owner. Keep your paperwork and tell the insurer.
Sources: Decree No. 03/2021/ND-CP, English text
What the insurer will not pay
Article 13 of the decree lists cases where the insurer pays nothing. The main ones for riders are:
Harm done on purpose. A rider who flees the scene without meeting the owner's duties. A rider who is too young to ride the bike, or who has no valid licence, or the wrong class of licence. Property damage caused by a rider with alcohol in the breath or blood, or who used drugs. Lost or stolen property, gold, money and similar items. Indirect losses, such as a fall in the value of a damaged item. War, terrorism and earthquake.
Claims have a time limit. The general deadline to ask for payment is one year from the date of the accident.
Sources: Decree No. 03/2021/ND-CP, English text
How to check your policy
Run through this short list before you buy or renew.
First, look at the certificate. Each vehicle gets its own certificate. It must show the insurer, the bike's plate or chassis number and its engine number, the start and end dates, and the price paid.
Second, match the details. The numbers on paper must match your bike.
Third, look for the dates. A policy that has ended does not protect you on the day of an accident.
Fourth, use the insurer's lookup. The decree requires every insurer to let the public search a certificate on its website to confirm its term and whether it is valid.
Fifth, pay the insurer, and keep the receipt. An insurer may issue a certificate only after the full premium is paid or a payment date has been agreed under Ministry of Finance rules.
If your policy is lost, ask the insurer that issued it, in writing, for a new copy.
A place on this register is not for sale.