New Crackdown on Uninsured drivers
The Road Safety Minister Mike Penning has announced that new powers to tackle uninsured driving will come into force within months. Under the new powers it will be an offence to keep an uninsured vehicle. Under the current law it is only an offence to drive an uninsured vehicle. At present every insured motorist pays an average of £30 each year which is included in their premiums to cover the costs of accidents involving uninsured and untraced drivers. Estimates auggest that uninsured and untraced drivers kill about 160 people every year and injure some 23,000 people a year.
Mike Penning stated “Uninsured drivers push up premiums for other motorists and often drive with no regard for other road users, so it is vital that we do everything we can to keep them off the roads. More than 400 uninsured vehicles are already being seized by the police every day but it is simply not possible to catch every uninsured driver in this way. That is why we are bringing in these new powers which will help us to take targeted action while freeing up police time to deal with the hard core of offenders.”
Ashton West, Chief Executive at the Motor Insurers’ Bureau, commented “This means that as enforcement can take place for both keeping and driving a vehicle without insurance there will be no place for illegal motorists to hide.”
The new laws are being called Continuous Insurance Enforcement and it is anticipated that these laws will complement and run alongside existing police roadside enforcement.
Under the new system:
– The DVLA will have the power to work in alongside the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB) to identify uninsured vehicles
– Uninsured vehicle owners will initially receive a letter telling them that their vehicle appears to be uninsured and warning them that they will be fined unless they take action
– That will be followed up shortly afterwards with a £100 fine unless the vehicle has been insured; and
– If the vehicle remains uninsured – it could then be seized and destroyed.
The new regulations do not apply to vehicles with a valid Statutory Off Road Notice (SORN). It is anticipated that the new regulations will come into force in Spring 2011.