Short answer. Yes, in principle. Article 2186 requires every motor vehicle owner to file a bond, executed by a government-controlled corporation or office, with the proper government office, to answer for damages to third persons. The amount and other terms of that bond are fixed by the competent public official.
What the law says
Every owner of a motor vehicle shall file with the proper government office a bond executed by a government-controlled corporation or office, to answer for damages to third persons.
Civil Code, Article 2186 — Compulsory Bond for Motor Vehicles. Read the full provision →
A bond requirement written directly into the vehicle owner's obligations
Article 2186 places an affirmative duty on every owner of a motor vehicle: he shall file with the proper government office a bond, and that bond must be executed by a government-controlled corporation or office. The purpose stated in the article itself is specific — the bond exists to answer for damages to third persons, meaning people outside the vehicle who might be injured or whose property might be damaged because of the vehicle's operation.
The bond's terms are set by public officials, not the article itself
The article does not fix the amount or specific conditions of the bond in its own text. Instead, it says the amount of the bond and other terms shall be fixed by the competent public official. This leaves the practical details — how much coverage is required, how the bond is structured — to the relevant government authority responsible for administering the requirement, rather than setting a specific peso figure in the Civil Code itself.
What this provision is meant to accomplish
Motor vehicles carry an inherent risk of causing injury or property damage to others through accidents, and victims of that harm are not always able to collect from an owner who lacks the means to pay. By requiring a bond issued through a government-controlled entity, Article 2186 aims to ensure that some financial backing exists specifically earmarked for third-party claims, rather than leaving an injured third person entirely dependent on the vehicle owner's personal solvency at the time of the accident.
Who this obligation falls on
The duty in Article 2186 attaches to ownership of the vehicle, not merely to driving it. It is the owner who must file the bond, which means responsibility for meeting this requirement generally travels with title to the vehicle rather than resting on whoever happens to be behind the wheel on a given day. This is consistent with how motor vehicle liability is generally structured in the Code, where an owner's responsibility for a vehicle's use by others is treated as part of the burden of ownership itself.