An estimated 4% of drivers are getting behind the wheel without insurance, but the number is falling, according to figures from the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (Telegraph).
According to the MIB the number of uninsured drivers has fallen from 1.9 million to 1.4 million since 2005. The MIB also says that the majority of uninsured drivers are under the age of 30 and most likely to be found in big cities. Police figures show that in London 10% of drivers do not have cover, and the figures in Merseyside and Manchester are 9.5% and 8.3% respectively.
The fall in the number of uninsured drivers is largely attributed to the system of continuous insurance enforcement brought in by the Labour Government, which gives the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) access to the MIB database, making it harder for uninsured motorists to avoid detection.
The information is also available to police, who can use it during roadside checks, which the Telegraph says has led to some drivers, who would otherwise have tried to avoid paying for insurance, getting cover.
Click here to read the full Telegraph report.
If driving or riding a motorised vehicle without insurance was treated as that of having no gun licence – there would be immediate arrest and prison. And should the uninsured kill or injure another road user, then murder and attempted murder charge, as the uninsured was committing a criminal offence. Being uninsured is both intentional and premeditated.
If this were implemented, it would prove a greater deterrent to abide by the law than the softly, softly approach we have at present.
Judith – Norfolk
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Not condoning the offence and subsequent effect in the event of an accident, but when a young person passes his or her test and then finds out that it would cost anything up to £14,000 to be insured it’s no wonder that some would drive without it. But they are only a small %age of offenders, the criminal element whose cars ar not regd, or who use false plates etc are another %age, but they are the ones that don’t show and are never detected.
rcraven Lancs
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Is it not a shame that the DSA refuse to check if a candidate has insurance before they take a driving test.
Don Bexhill
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