About motor third party liability insurance

Under Section 2 of the Motor Traffic Damage Act, owners of motor driven vehicles must have motor third party liability (MTPL) insurance. If your vehicle causes an accident, the MTPL insurance provides compensation if the driver, passenger or other people are injured. The insurance also covers third party property claims.

MTPL insurance does not cover damage to your vehicle or property in the vehicle. For that you need to supplement the MTPL insurance with comprehensive or partial vehicle insurance cover.

When must you have MTPL insurance?

You must take out MTPL insurance from the day you become the owner of a vehicle. This applies even if you do not drive or use the vehicle from the first day.

You should not wait for the vehicle registration certificate from the Swedish Transport Agency. The insurance cover must start on the same day that you buy or otherwise take over the vehicle.

The previous owner’s insurance ceases to apply as soon as the vehicle ownership changes.

Who should take out the insurance?

The MTPL insurance policyholder must be the owner of the vehicle or the lessee (the person leasing the vehicle). If the policy is taken out by another person the vehicle is counted as uninsured.

If the owner is a minor, that is under the age of 18, a user must also be specified in the road traffic registry. This may be for example a parent or guardian. The user must take out MTPL insurance and be responsible for paying for it.

When the user turns 18 or acquires a driving certificate or driving license for the vehicle, the user is automatically removed from the road traffic registry. From that date, the owner themself must be responsible for taking out MTPL insurance for the vehicle.

How do you take out MTPL insurance?   

  1. Contact an insurance company.  
  2. Choose the level of cover.
    Apart from the compulsory MTPL insurance you can add comprehensive or partial insurance cover. They provide varying cover.
  3. Take out the insurance.  
    You can take out insurance on the websites of most insurance companies.  

The vehicle must have MTPL insurance as long as it is not notified as off road or deregistered with the Swedish Transport Agency.   

This means that the vehicle must have MTPL insurance even under the following circumstances:

  • The vehicle is not used.
  • The vehicle is in such bad condition that it cannot be driven.
  • The vehicle has been taken to a workshop for repair.
  • The vehicle is prohibited from being driven.
  • The vehicle is stolen.
  • The vehicle has been taken to a car dealer to be sold. You are responsible for ensuring that it is insured until you are no longer registered as the owner.
  • The vehicle has been confiscated by an authority and you are able to collect the vehicle.
  • The vehicle has been taken to a vehicle dismantler but has not been deregistered.

The Motor Traffic Damage Act

The regulations on MTPL insurance are set out in the Motor Traffic Damage Act. The Act is available to read on the Sveriges Riksdag (Swedish Parliament) website (in Swedish).

The Motor Traffic Damage Act (in Swedish)

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