Driving with no insurance remains one of the UK’s biggest motoring problems

The Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB) run the Motor Insurance Database (a record of cover details for every vehicle in the country) and this database is giving police a crucial edge for 2 years now with the Police having the ability to seize uninsured cars.

Computerised cameras are used to read number plates of passing traffic and, via a link with the database, automatically identify vehicles that appear to be uninsured.

Furthermore, drivers without insurance are usually a good marker for other criminality as questions about insurance can sometimes lead elsewhere.

When cars without insurance are seized, approximately 30% of are never reclaimed which leaves the police to bear the cost of crushing, disposal or resale.

For the last 2 years, insurer Direct Line has paid some of the costs of recovery and storage of uninsured vehicles in County Durham, allowing police to target the problem hard. At least 4,000 uninsured vehicles have been taken off the road through this initiative.

On average,160 people are killed each year in crashes caused by motorists with no insurance and accidents caused by drivers without cover add around £30 to the annual premium of honest drivers.

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