Last year, motorists submitted over 760,000 applications for accident registration via the Europrotocol without the participation of the traffic police. Thus, more than 40% of accidents were registered using this tool. Experts believe that the low popularity of the Europrotocol is due to a number of factors.
Why the Europrotocol is unpopular
The presence of a comprehensive insurance policy (CASCO) forces motorists to wait for inspectors to obtain the necessary documents. In addition, drivers have a low level of trust in the Europrotocol. Another factor is fraudsters who, using the simplified registration process, organize staged accidents to obtain money from insurance companies.
In the 11 months of 2025, Russian drivers submitted 761,700 applications for traffic accident settlement under the Europrotocol. This is 10,000 less than in 2024. The share of such applications among all applications under compulsory motor third-party liability insurance (OSAGO) increased to 41%, which is 1.5% more than last year. Regional differences in the use of the Europrotocol are significant. In the Primorsky Territory, this figure reached 71.1%, while in Kamchatka it is only 8.4%.
If the car owner recognized as the injured party registers a traffic accident through the Europrotocol, they can receive compensation for damage up to 400,000 rubles in the absence of disagreements. In case of disagreements, the limit is reduced to 200,000 rubles. In the absence of a photo of the accident, the amount of payments is only 100,000 rubles, and in case of disagreements and the absence of pictures, payments are not made. The Europrotocol is not available if more than two cars were involved in the accident or one of the drivers does not have insurance.
Forecasts and growing obstacles
Experts believe that the share of accidents registered without the traffic police is unlikely to exceed 50% in the coming years. The head of the working group "Protection of the rights of motorists" of the "People's Front", Pyotr Shkumatov, points to many deterrents. For example, 20% of drivers have a CASCO policy, which requires оформление documents through inspectors. In 10% of cases, the amount of damage exceeds 400,000 rubles. In addition, 6–7% of drivers drive without OSAGO, which makes the Europrotocol inapplicable in the event of an accident involving them.
Vice President of the National Automobile Union, Anton Shaparin, notes that drivers are afraid of being left without payments due to minor errors in the Europrotocol documents and therefore prefer to wait for inspectors.
Many still believe that the Europrotocol is a tool of deception, and the probability of being left without payment is extremely high with the slightest error in the documents. Due to the low level of trust in the system, many prefer to wait for inspectors.
One of the problems is also accident commissioners who offer victims to receive money on the spot, concluding an assignment agreement and a power of attorney with the car owner, allowing them to represent the rights of the victim in court. Assignment is a legal operation to transfer the rights of claim from one person to another.
New fraud schemes with the Europrotocol
Director of Asset Protection of the Russian Association of Motor Insurers (RSA), Sergey Efremov, talks about a new type of fraud that became widespread last year. Fraudsters stage accidents involving two cars, one of which has a "multidrive" policy - a policy without limiting the number of drivers. The accident notice is оформляется with a non-existent driver, and the insurance company cannot verify this. Photos are taken through a mobile application, which allows the attacker to receive a payment of up to 400,000 rubles. Fraudsters are actively operating in the Primorsky Territory and the Novosibirsk Region, and to combat these schemes, the RSA is preparing changes to the law on OSAGO.