New Motor Vehicle Liability Law (WAM): mandatory insurance for vehicles in care settings.

The Motor Vehicle Liability Law (WAM) requires anyone who owns a motor vehicle to arrange civil liability insurance, covering damage caused to others by the vehicle. Changes to the law made in 2024 have tightened up the rules and modified some important exceptions.

One of the most significant changes is that the requirement to have insurance now applies everywhere, including on private property such as the grounds of your residential care centre or the car park of your psychiatric institution. This means that a mobility scooter that was previously only used on private property and was therefore exempt must now be insured in accordance with the new law.

Although the rules have been extended, there are still some exemptions from the insurance requirement. They apply in the following cases:

• Lightweight and low-speed vehicles: Motor vehicles with a maximum speed of 6 kph and a maximum weight of 100 kg (including the battery).
• Lightweight and faster vehicles: Motor vehicles that can go faster than 6 kph but no faster than 25 kph, and which have a maximum weight of 25 kg (including the battery).
• Motorised wheelchairs: Wheelchairs intended exclusively for people with a physical disability are also exempt.

Note: An exemption from mandatory third-party liability insurance doesn’t mean that you can’t be held liable for damage. Good third-party insurance or family insurance is still necessary to cover damage to third parties.

What do these new rules actually mean for the most common vehicles in the care sector?

• Mobility scooters: These now almost always fall within the mandatory third-party insurance requirement. There are two reasons for this: they usually weigh more than 25 kg and they are not exclusively intended for people with a physical disability.
• Electric bicycles: A standard electric bicycle or e-bike will for the most part be exempt. The motor only provides pedal assistance, the maximum speed is less than 25 kph and the weight is usually less than 25 kg.
• Electric rickshaws and cargo bikes: These heavier bicycles often weigh more than 25 kg. In addition, they sometimes have a motor that provides propulsion without you needing to pedal. Because of this, they are subject to compulsory insurance. This also applies to speed pedelecs.

It’s therefore crucial that you check for each motorised vehicle within your institution whether it meets the new requirements and whether separate third-party motor vehicle insurance is needed.