Ending Age Discrimination: A Victory for Equality on the Roads

The amendment to the Motor Vehicles (Third Party Liability Insurance) Law, proposed by MP Alexandra Attalides, was passed on Thursday, March 5, 2026. After a three-year struggle to overturn this injustice, the bill received a unanimous 49 votes from across the political spectrum.

The passing of the amendment to the Motor Vehicles Law of 2025 marks the rectification of a long-standing injustice against older drivers, finally aligning the insurance market with the Constitution.

For decades, age was used arbitrarily as the sole criterion for denying coverage or imposing extortionate premiums—a practice that constituted an abusive exercise of economic power by insurance companies. Under the new Article 3A, the use of age as the exclusive factor for refusing to sign or renew a contract is explicitly prohibited, ensuring that no citizen will be deprived of the right to freedom of movement based on their date of birth.

Beyond moral vindication, the new legislation safeguards drivers with unprecedented transparency and accountability tools. Insurance companies are now required to provide a written and fully documented justification for every decision, while the Financial Commissioner gains the authority to resolve related disputes through fast-track procedures within 30 days.

Especially critical is the provision allowing for the maintenance of insurance coverage under the same terms until a final decision is issued, protecting the driver from the risk of being left uninsured while their complaint is being reviewed. With the threat of administrative fines of up to €10,000 for non-compliant companies, the state is sending a clear message that such arbitrariness now belongs firmly in the past.

Special thanks to the Parliamentary Committee on Human Rights and Equal Opportunities between Men and Women, and to MPs Irene Charalambidou, Rita Superman, Fotini Tsiridou, Andreas Kafkalias, Andreas Apostolou, Demetris Demetriou, Giorgos Koukoumas, Christos Christofias, and Christos Senekis for their support in this immense effort.

A big well done also to the organizations that joined forces to reach this major achievement: PASYDY, the Cyprus Third Age Observatory, EKYSY, SEK and OPREPO.