Tips to avoid scams when buying SOAT

When owning or driving a vehicle in Colombia, a series of requirements must be met to ensure a safe environment for drivers and pedestrians, whether on inter-municipal roads or within cities and municipalities. Some of these are having a license, a property card and traffic accident insurance.

Precisely the latter is known as the Compulsory Insurance against Traffic Accidents (Soat), which covers any kind of bodily injury caused to people in traffic accidents and is mandatory, since only those vehicles that are exempt are agricultural machinery and railways are allowed to move, as long as they do not use public roads.

According to Fasecolda, the main characteristics of the insurance include its focus on personal accidents, the insured are potential victims of traffic accidents, it covers bodily injuries to people in traffic accidents and has built-in coverage in case of death as a result of a traffic accident.

Three out of 10 Colombians are in a situation of monetary poverty

“The owner of every motor vehicle circulating in the country, including foreign vehicles that circulate temporarily in the national territory. Their obligation is to have a valid mandatory insurance at all times. Insurance companies authorized to operate the mandatory traffic accident insurance branch. Their obligation is to issue insurance to all vehicles that circulate in the national territory,” said these experts.

The union added that the SOAT coverage and its amounts focus on medical, surgical, pharmaceutical and hospital expenses of up to 800 minimum daily wages at the time of the accident; as well as permanent disability of up to 180 daily wages and death and funeral expenses of up to 750 daily wages and transportation and mobilization expenses for victims of up to daily wages.

Petro ministers to be investigated for anomalies in new teacher health system

The importance and demand for this insurance is such that criminal organizations have networks specialized in defrauding citizens by selling fraudulent insurance, which leaves them unprotected. to drivers in the event of any eventuality that may arise on the roads.

Between January and September of last year alone, the Colombian Financial Superintendency received some 400 complaints about sales of fake SOAT, while it is believed that there are more affected since according to data from Fasecolda, in 2023 alone, 5,267 cases were reported, worth some $2.65 billion; highlighting how lucrative this crime is, which continues to affect Colombians.

Anla will license renewable projects of more than 50 megawatts after the decree is issued

This is why Fasecolda recommends purchasing insurance only through physical branches, digital channels and call centers of companies authorized by the Colombian Financial Superintendence, while if you choose to buy it online, you must make sure that the site is secure, checking the padlock in the address bar and avoiding access through links.

“Do not share documents or personal data through social networks or instant messaging services. Do not purchase policies when you are asked to deposit money into the accounts of natural persons. Be wary of any SOAT offer made through WhatsApp, since no authorized insurance company requests payments through this channel. Always check with the insurer before making any payment through a digital wallet,” they added.

The reasons why the IMF lowered its growth forecasts for Latin America

These experts also advised to be wary of offers with high discounts, as they could be fraudulent and scammers often use the image of insurance companies on websites and social networks to deceive buyers. This is why before making a purchase, you should confirm the legitimacy of the channel directly with the insurer to avoid falling into these traps.

“Also, beware of Fasecolda’s name being impersonated on websites, where unscrupulous individuals may offer Compulsory Traffic Accident Insurance policies. Fasecolda is the association of insurance companies and does not sell this type of insurance. Always check with the insurer before proceeding with any purchase to ensure that you are purchasing a legitimate policy,” they concluded.

Warning about fake ‘G5 bills’: this is how you can avoid scams, according to Banrep

It is worth remembering that a fake SOAT carries serious legal and financial consequences. On the one hand, you can receive significant fines, immobilization of the vehicle and criminal charges for fraud and on the other, in the event of an accident, there will be no coverage, which will force you to assume all medical expenses and repairs. A fake insurance also It can cause administrative inconveniences when trying to renew insurance or carry out vehicle procedures.