On Monday, senior insurance and public transport industry officials issued a critical public warning to commuters across Barbados: any passenger paying for travel in an unlicensed “pirate” private vehicle will have no financial protection if a crash occurs, and they are urging both riders and unregulated operators to bring their operations into full compliance with national licensing and insurance rules.
Randy Graham, Chief Executive Officer of CG United Insurance and a former president of the General Insurance Association of Barbados, explained that the persistent practice of private vehicle owners operating as informal, fare-charging public transport remains a major red flag for the country’s insurance sector. Speaking exclusively to Barbados TODAY, Graham emphasized that private vehicle registration under the island’s Road Traffic Act explicitly prohibits operators from collecting fares from passengers.
Any driver who wants to carry paying passengers must first secure a formal commercial operating license from the national Licensing Authority, and purchase a specialized commercial insurance policy that matches the higher risk of public transit operation, Graham outlined. “A standard private vehicle insurance policy does not extend coverage to fare-paying passengers,” he stressed. “If you are operating illegally and are involved in an accident, there is no guarantee that either the vehicle or the injured passengers will receive compensation from the existing insurance plan.”
Graham went on to explain the core difference between private and commercial coverage: commercial vehicles like taxis and minibuses spend far more time on the road transporting groups of passengers, so their licensing and insurance frameworks are designed to account for this elevated risk. Private policies are priced and structured for personal use, not regular commercial passenger transport, and do not offer the same level of protection for injured passengers that regulated commercial policies provide.
To address this ongoing risk, Graham called on unlicensed operators to update their paperwork and secure proper coverage immediately, while urging riders to proactively choose only fully registered and licensed transit options when paying for travel. “We are asking passengers to only use properly registered and licensed vehicles when they pay for a ride, because if they don’t, there is a very high chance that any injury costs from an accident will not be covered by insurance,” he said.
Roy Raphael, Chairman of the Alliance Owners of Public Transport (AOPT), echoed Graham’s warning, and noted that the Barbados government has put new accessible pathways in place to help informal operators transition to legal operation. Raphael pointed to the recent approval of 150 new permits under the government’s Transport Augmentation Programme (TAP), administered by the national Transport Authority, as a clear opportunity for unlicensed operators to regularize their work.
“If you want to transport passengers and offer a legitimate service, go to the Transport Authority and apply for a legal permit to operate,” Raphael said. “That way, if an incident does occur, you and your passengers are fully covered.” He also warned commuters against turning to unlicensed pirate operators even when regular public transit services are delayed on under-served routes, noting that riders are knowingly putting their own safety and financial security at risk. “People don’t expect accidents to happen, but when they do, there is no safety net left,” he added.
Raphael highlighted that the TAP program includes flexible payment plans for permit fees, making it far easier for small operators to bring their services into compliance with national rules. “Get yourself legalized. Stop putting children, elderly people and other commuters in unnecessary danger,” he urged. He also added a urgent note tied to rising road safety concerns across the island: the country has seen a growing number of severe road crashes involving passenger vehicles, including multiple incidents of vehicle overturns and mass casualties. Unlicensed operators often flee the scene of crashes because they know they have violated the law, leaving injured passengers with no one to turn to for compensation. “Don’t put yourself in that position,” Raphael warned.