Saudi Star!
Kuwait’s current traffic reality requires a rethinking of how traffic accidents are handled, particularly minor incidents that do not involve serious injuries or criminal suspicion. Leaving damaged vehicles on the road and waiting for patrol units and inspectors can turn a limited incident into long-distance congestion. Roads are already congested, and such delays may even lead to secondary accidents.
This problem is not new. A government study published in 2010 proposed establishing a specialized entity for the immediate assessment of traffic accident damages and the mitigation of their impacts. The study suggested using modern technologies, digital imaging and inspection, providing towing vehicles, and linking them to the traffic operations room and insurance companies.
In this context, the experience of “Najm Insurance Services” in Saudi Arabia appears worthy of attention and adoption. Its services have evolved to include digital accident reporting, digital inspection, and the electronic submission and tracking of insurance claims, within a strategy aimed at accelerating procedures and reducing congestion caused by such accidents.
This does not mean that Kuwait should create an identical copy of “Najm.” Rather, it should develop a Kuwaiti model for managing accident response that clearly distributes roles: a specialized entity should handle minor property-damage accidents, while traffic police intervention should be limited to cases requiring investigation, involving injuries or fatalities, criminal suspicion, or fundamental disputes between parties.
This can be achieved through a unified national accident platform that allows drivers to report incidents electronically, automatically determine their location, and photograph vehicles and damages according to specific instructions. The data would then be sent to the relevant authority and the insurance company, with the platform linked to approved towing companies to ensure vehicles are removed from the road as quickly as possible.
Digital data can also be leveraged to combat insurance fraud. The Saudi Insurance Authority announced that “Najm” developed indicators to detect suspected fraud based on factors related to the time of the accident, the driver, the damages, the documentation of the incident, and the evidence available at the scene.
Kuwait could implement this idea gradually through a six-month pilot project on the most congested roads, measuring the average time for reporting, the arrival of specialized inspectors, vehicle removal, and the reopening of roads as quickly as possible. This would determine the percentage of accidents processed electronically without police patrol intervention, thereby freeing up police resources for other critical sectors while accelerating insurance claim settlements, replacing tedious bureaucracy and frustrating red tape.
Therefore, benefiting from the “Najm” experience does not mean copying the Saudi model, but rather adopting its core philosophy: transforming accident management from a bureaucratic procedure that drains traffic police time and disrupts traffic flow into an integrated digital system. The primary goal of this system is the rapid documentation of accidents, ensuring each party receives their rights, clearing the scene, and restoring normal traffic flow at maximum speed.
Given that Kuwait has previously studied this idea officially, the current requirement is not to start from scratch, but to update the old concept using current technologies and artificial intelligence. This should be accompanied by effective partnerships between traffic authorities, insurance companies, and the relevant private sector, aiming to achieve smoother traffic, faster services, and more efficient use of security and traffic resources in the right places. God Almighty is the Helper in all circumstances.
