75 years of the "Green Insurance Card" - overcoming borders with good insurance
Just get in the car and head south - that's how many Germans started their summer vacation this year. They know: They don't have to worry about their insurance cover in the event of a car accident at their vacation destination or on the way there. Thanks to the Green Card System, their third party motor liability insurance is currently valid in 48 countries.
What seems simple to the average person is a daily administrative feat: The Green Card System under the umbrella of the Council of Bureaux (COB) now covers around 1,500 insurers and up to 500 million vehicles in Europe, parts of North Africa and the Middle East. The members of the COB handle around 375,000 cross-border accidents per year or more than 1,000 every day. "What began as an idea 75 years ago now secures countless journeys and transports and has helped millions of people after cross-border traffic accidents", says Sandra Schwarz, President of the COB.
The vision 75 years ago: Overcoming boundaries, improving victim protection
What is taken for granted today was still complicated and expensive until the 1950s. Drivers had to take out so-called “border insurance” every time they entered another country. This was only valid for the country in which it was concluded. Only Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden had already created a system of cross-border motor insurance before the Second World War, thus constituting the model for today's Green Card System.
After the Second World War, 14 European countries - at that time still not including Germany - pursued a common vision from 1949 onwards: They wanted to facilitate cross-border road traffic and help accident victims receive compensation quickly and easily. To this end, border insurance policies were to be replaced by a standardised document that would be accepted as proof of motor vehicle insurance in all participating countries.
To make this vision a reality, they founded the COB, concluded agreements between the national Green Card bureaus and developed an "International Motor Insurance Certificate" to be printed on green paper: the "Green Insurance Card". In 1953, the Green Card System was finally launched in a total of 19 countries, later in the Federal Republic of Germany as well.
From border controls to the License Plate Agreement
The Green Card System quickly became a success story. The territory grew steadily - with the founding member Czechoslovakia and the inclusion of Poland, Hungary and Romania in the 1950s and 1960s, also on the other side of the "Iron Curtain". But especially in the European Union, cross-border traffic became easier and easier, with more and more cars crossing borders. In the early years, Green Cards still had to be shown every time you crossed the border, but these checks were gradually abolished. Instead, more and more countries recognised each other's national license plates as proof of insurance. Since 1991, this regulation has been in force in 39 member states, including all countries of the European Economic Area, through the so-called “License Plate Agreement”. Drivers no longer need to have a Green Card with them, but are automatically protected by the Green Card System via their license plates.
The Green Insurance Card will be white - and digital from 2025
Since 2021, the "Green Insurance Card" has only been issued on white paper. The new color has advantages for insurers and drivers: Insurers can simply send the new card in digital form as a PDF, which customers can then print out themselves at home. Previously, the Green Cards were either sent by post or had to be picked up from insurers' offices. It will be even easier from 2025: The hard copy form, which has been mandatory up to now, will also disappear then. Instead, all you will need to do is carry a PDF on your smartphone...But even after 75 years, the name "Green Card" has not changed.
About the Council of Bureaux (COB)
The COB is the international umbrella organisation for the Green Card System and the national compensation bodies and guarantee funds. The national compensation bodies secure the claims of accident victims if the cross-border settlement of a claim within the European Economic Area has failed through the normal channels. The national guarantee funds compensate road accident victims after accidents involving uninsured vehicles, hit-and-run accidents with serious personal injury and in some countries, for example Germany, if the vehicle was deliberately misused as a weapon. The COB currently comprises 60 member organisations from 48 nations.
About COB President Sandra Schwarz
