Car evaluation to minimise insurance disputes Part I

Rajendram explained that even Bank Negara Malaysia had called for a common database to resolve this problem. “We hope to be the industry’s standard,” he said.He said ISM had been looking for a reputable car valuer to develop the website and found a credible partner in EurotaxGlass’s. It took them almost two years to complete the website. “We are very glad that EurotaxGlass’s is willing to partner us. This is the first for EurotaxGlass’s in Asia. This is their entry point in Asia,” Rajendram said.ISM has its beginnings as a project by the General Insurance Association of Malaysia. It was eventually incorporated as a company in 2005 with 35 insurers and four takaful operators as members.EurotaxGlass’s representative for the project, Information Services Pty Ltd of Australia, has developed similar websites for 31 other countries, according to its managing director of Glass’s Santo Amoddio.EurotaxGlass’s, with its headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland, has been evaluating cars for 55 years and had developed a mechanism and mathematical formula to calculate car value, he said.“Sometimes, what a dealer pays for a car doesn’t reflect its market value,” he added.Asian Auto magazine editor Daniel Fernandez said car insurers who had been over-charging and car dealers could suffer as a result of the website.“No longer can they dictate their own valuations and prices. For the first time in Malaysia, there will be a market standard,” he said.
by Kevin Tan