The number of road accidents made by foreigners on the Tunisian territory, where they are held civilly responsible, increased by 37%, or 744 new cases, until the end of September 2023, compared to 541 cases during the same period of 2022.
Director General of the Tunisian Automobile Bureau (BUAT), Ahmed Hadrouk, told TAP that this ‘remarkable’ increase is due to the 121% increase in the number of orange card claims declared to the Bureau and mainly claims involving Algerian motorists (132 cases as of 09/2023 compared to 28 cases as of 09/2022).
The orange card system is designed to facilitate the movement of vehicles and people between Arab countries (signatories of the convention) as well as boost trade between these countries.
Hadrouk explained that the increasing number of accidents caused by Algerians is due to the reopening of the borders with Tunisia since July after a closure which lasted almost two years due to the repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic
On the other hand, he underscored that the n
umber of road accidents made by Libyan nationals is stable.
He added that BUAT also reviewed 23 cases of road accidents caused by Tunisian citizens abroad holding green cards, compared to 17 cases last year, an increase of 35%.
Concerning the payments made by the BUAT for compensation for victims of road accidents, as of September 30, 2023, the sum of the amounts settled neared almost 5.5 MD compared to 4.4 MD during the same period of the 2022, an increase of 25%.
Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse