History of the CoB

End of the 19th c.	Arrival of motor vehicles in Europe: an event for celebration! But no total celebration since persons injured or damaged by those vehicles had no certain access to compensation.
1918-1940	Gradual introduction in European Countries of compulsory Third Party motor insurance. But remedy was incomplete: financial protection available only to victims of motorists resident in their countries and not for victims of visiting motorists from other countries. Search for a solution entrusted to the Institute of Rome for the Unification of Private Law (UNIDROIT). No positive outcome and in any event studies interrupted by the Second World War. In four Northern countries (DK, FIN, N, S) a system of mutual recognition of Motor Third Party Liability (MTPL) insurance is introduced, that will later inspire the Green Card System and the 1st European Motor Insurance Directive.
1947	Problem taken up by the Economic Commission for Europe (ECE) of the United Nations -> question posed to Governments: "Could the legislation of your countries contemplate an agreement by which insurers or a Bureau of insurers in their countries undertake to reimburse an insurance company or Bureau of insurers in another country, amounts paid by the latter to victims of road accidents?" -> Positive replies! Idea formulated by certain Governments, much assisted by advice and assistance from Insurance Experts, for a System of the International Certificate of Motor Insurance ("Green Card System") which took some account of arrangements existing in the Nordic countries. Led to the issue, by the Sub-Committee on Road Transport of the ECE, of Recommendation No 5 - (E/ECE/TRANS/145 - E/EEC/TRANS SC1/C 39) - 25th January 1949
1949	International Conference of Motor Insurers convened in London by Motor Insurers’ Bureau United Kingdom at which: the ECE. Recommendation was approved the Council of Bureaux (CoB) was established Guy F. Johnson (GB) appointed as first Chairman of the CoB. Secretariat services were entrusted to Motor Insurers’ Bureau (GB) – the Secretariat later established, in 1991, as an independent entity.
1949	Members: Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Finland, France, Greece, Ireland, Luxembourg, Norway, The Netherlands, Slovak Republic, Sweden, Switzerland/Liechtenstein, United Kingdom.
1951	First official meeting of the CoB– Adoption of model for an Agreement between National Insurers’ Bureaux Format of the Green Card settled Adoption of a Declaration to the ECE that Insurance Markets were now ready for amendments by Governments to national legislation to provide for the introduction of the Green Card System
1951	New member: German Democratic Republic
1952	Resolution No.43 adopted by the Economic Commission for Europe formally approving the Green Card System, the form of the International Motor Insurance Card (“Green Card”)
1953	Implementation of the Green Card System on the 1st January 1953
1953	New member: Italy, Spain, Portugal
1954	New members: Austria, Serbia
1958	New member: Poland
1959	Introduction by the CoB, at the request of ECE, of a model form of Agreement between individual Bureaux, to facilitate the abolition of the presentation of Green Cards Clifford W. Rivington (GB), Chairman of the CoB until 1967
1960	New member: Hungary
1964	New member: Turkey
1965	A decision to extend the territory of the Green Card System to certain countries outside Europe
1965	New member: Romania
1967	Stephen O. Masefield (GB), Chairman of the CoB until 1983
1968	New member: Israel
1969	New members: Morocco, Tunisia
1970	New member: Iceland
1971	New member: Bulgaria
1972	Adoption of the 1st Motor Insurance Directive: by this Directive, the control of Green Cards for vehicles normally based in a Member State of the European Union entering the territory of another Member State, was abolished.
1973	Supplementary Agreements between Western European Bureaux
1974	Supplementary Agreements between Western European Bureaux, Czechoslovakia, German Democratic Republic and Hungary. Alternative Green Card format proposed to and accepted by ECE
1976	New member: Iran
1982	Peter Morgan (GB), Secretary General of the CoB until 1998
1983	Peter J. Sherman (GB), Chairman of the CoB until 1991
1983	Adoption of the 2nd Motor Insurance Directive
1984	Consolidated Resolution of the Economic Commission for Europe on the Facilitation of Road Transport
1985	New member: Malta
1990	Adoption of the 3rd Motor Insurance Directive
1991	Constitution of the CoB adopted. Secretariat of the CoB became an independent entity. New text and signature of the Uniform Agreement. Signature by 19 Bureaux of a Multilateral Guarantee Agreement, based on Directive of 1972 and subsequent Directives, which unified and replaced pre-existing bilateral Agreements supplemental to the Uniform Agreement – thereafter extended to include 4 other Bureaux. - Raffaele Deidda (I), President of the CoB until 1997
1992	New members: Albania, Croatia, Estonia, Slovenia
1994	Protection of Visitors Agreement to provide assistance to visitors who are victim of an accident in the visited countries
1994	New member: F.Y.R.O.M
1996	New members: Andorra, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cyprus
1997	Creation of Transitional Membership for all new Members accepted by the Council Ulf D. Lemor (D), President of the CoB until 2005
1997	New members: Moldova, Ukraine
1998	Michael J. Nicholson (GB), Secretary General of the CoB until 2007
1998	New member: Latvia
1999	The CoB celebrates 50 years of its existence in Oxford, England
2000	Adoption of the 4th Motor Insurance Directive For the EEA countries, the PoV agreement of 1994 is superseded by the directive
2003	New members: Belarus, Lithuania
2005	Adoption of the 5th Motor Insurance Directive
2005	Ulf Blomgren (S), President of the CoB until 2010
2006	Secretariat services of the CoB are transferred to new offices in Brussels
2007	Alain Pire (B), Secretary General of the CoB until 2012
2009	New member: Russia
2009	Adoption of the Codified Motor Insurance Directive
2010	Mariusz Wichtowski (PL), President of the CoB until 2015
2012	Greet Floré (B), Secretary General of the CoB
2012	New Protection of Visitors Agreement(completely reviewed)
2012	New member: Montenegro
2015	Jean Zenners (L), President of the CoB until 2020
2016	New member: Azerbaijan

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