CNA file photo

Taipei, Feb. 22 (CNA) Riders of public bicycles in Taipei, New Taipei, Taoyuan and Kaohsiung will all enjoy free insurance coverage, starting sometime in the second quarter of the year.

Chairman Chen Tsan-huang (陳燦煌) of the Non-Life Insurance Association of the Republic of China announced Thursday that the respective city governments will invest in insurance for users of their bike sharing services.

According to Chen, the Taipei, New Taipei and Taoyuan city governments have all decided to purchase third party public liability insurance for Youbike users, so that they will be covered should they cause damage to another individual while riding the public bikes.

The insurance compensation for the death of a third party individual caused by a bike rider will be a maximum of NT$2 million (US$68,361).

Meanwhile, Kaohsiung has opted to purchase personal injury insurance to cover any injuries or accidents the rider may sustain while using the southern city's City Bike.

The insurance provides up to NT$1 million in compensation for the death or disability of a rider that occurs while using the public bike, and NT$1,000 for each day of hospital stay.

Total costs for each of the three northern cities will be NT$400 per bike annually, with Taipei having an estimated 13,000 public bikes, New Taipei with 11,000 and Taoyuan with 4,700.

The association noted that personal injury insurance for Kaohsiung will be a little more expensive, but said the exact figure has not yet been set.

(By Tsai Yi-chu and Kuan-lin Liu)
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