site.btaTaxi Drivers to Continue Protesting Against New Liability Insurance Price Increase

The protests of Bulgarian taxi drivers will continue, said Volodya Domashenko, co-chair of the National Association for the Protection of Carriers and Taxi Drivers, on Tuesday. Domashenko emphasized that although the taxi companies were able to negotiate a significantly smaller increase in the compulsory liability insurance with some of the insurers, drivers still find the prices too high.

"We believe that it is high time that those who have nothing to do with the costs associated with taxi transportation, reconsider their behaviour", stated an official statement of the association.

"The carriers somehow negotiated this reduction in insurance, which can only be seen in one company and it is over 50%. For my car, I calculated that last year my insurance was BGN 300, and the new one will be BGN 477. Since the beginning of the protests, we all wanted the return of the prices from September with a possible increase of 10-15%", Domashenko said. He called on citizens to also pay attention to their insurances and join the upcoming protest, as there is also a price increase for their car insurances.

At present, the date on which the drivers will resume effective strike action has not been specified. "There are two options - one is to block the country, as was the case with the first protest, and the other option is for drivers from all over the country to drive to Sofia," Domashenko stressed.

The statement also notes that the economic indicators of insurance companies for 2024 have improved compared to the same period in 2023, according to the Financial Supervision Commission. Their revenues have grown by more than 2% and their expenses have decreased by more than 15%. This is due to the fact that there has been a steady trend towards a reduction in claims by around 10% since 2020.