The Green Card Paradox! How SIGAL Avni Ponari Boosted Its Premiums While Claims Payments Fell by More Than 60%
Albanians are traveling abroad more frequently, with a significant share choosing to travel in their own vehicles. According to data from the Institute of Statistics (INSTAT), Albanian residents made approximately 4.5 million trips for personal purposes in 2025.
The months with the highest volume of travel were August (12.6%), June (10.9%), December (10.2%), and July (9.8%), confirming that the summer season remains the period of greatest mobility among Albanian travelers. A substantial portion of these journeys were made using private vehicles.
Paradoksi i Kartonit Jeshil! Si i mbushi xhepat SIGAL…por dëmshpërblimet ranë deri në mbi 60%
For thousands of citizens traveling abroad by car, one of the essential documents is the Green Card, the internationally recognized certificate confirming compulsory third-party liability insurance coverage in countries where the document is required.
However, insurance market data reveal a development that deserves closer attention.
An analysis of data published by the Albanian Financial Supervisory Authority (AFSA) indicates that in 2025, SIGAL, the country’s largest insurance company, recorded an increase in gross written premiums from Green Card insurance, while at the same time, claims payments fell significantly compared with 2024.
Premiums Rise as the Summer Travel Season Begins
In June 2025, as the summer travel season got underway, gross written premiums for Green Card insurance were more than 15% higher than in June 2024.
The upward trend continued into July, when premiums increased by approximately 14% compared with the same month a year earlier.
But the picture changes considerably when claims payments are examined.
According to AFSA data, in July 2025, SIGAL paid 14% less in Green Card claims than it did in July 2024.
The decline became even more pronounced in the following months—precisely during the period when the number of Albanians traveling abroad typically reaches its peak.
In August 2025, Green Card claims payments were more than 60% lower than in August 2024, despite the increase in premiums and the high volume of citizens purchasing the insurance product for their international trips.
The same pattern continued in the months that followed.
In September 2025, claims payments were approximately 58% lower than in September 2024.
In October, the decline exceeded 53%.
In November, claims payments fell by 37%.
And in December 2025, the year ended with claims payments approximately 16% lower than in the same month of 2024.
A Trend That Raises Questions
The figures point to a striking contrast: on one side, revenue from the sale of Green Card insurance increased; on the other, payments made to cover claims declined significantly.
The data alone do not establish why this divergence occurred, nor do they by themselves demonstrate any wrongdoing by SIGAL. Differences in the number and severity of accidents, claims reporting and settlement patterns, cross-border claims processing, and other market factors can all affect the timing and level of insurance payouts.
Nevertheless, the gap between rising premiums and sharply declining claims payments—particularly during the peak summer travel months—raises legitimate questions about the dynamics of the Green Card insurance market and warrants closer examination of the underlying data.
How did premiums evolve compared with the actual number and value of claims?
What explains the significant decline in claims payments during the peak travel season?
And how did SIGAL’s Green Card business perform overall in 2025 compared with 2024?
These are questions that deserve transparent answers, particularly given the large number of Albanian motorists who purchase Green Card coverage every year before traveling abroad.
