The RAC has attributed the Covid-19 pandemic to a rise in the number of provisional driving licence holders caught behind the wheel without insurance.
Figures obtained by the RAC via a Freedom of Information request to the DVLA show 14,618 provisional licence holders were caught for the offence in 2020 – up 16% on 2018.
The RAC says a shortage of available driving tests due to Covid – as well as the impact on people’s finances – could be behind the rise.
The motoring organisation also questions the ‘disproportionate amount of tax’ young drivers – who are more likely to have provisional licences – must pay when they buy car insurance.
Simon Williams, RAC Insurance spokesman, said: “The fact the number of provisional drivers caught without insurance increased in 2020 may well be a symptom of the onslaught of the pandemic and the impact it had on learning to drive and people’s finances.
“The shortage of available driving tests due to Covid is also likely to be a significant factor behind the high numbers.
“It’s also the case that younger drivers, who are more likely to have provisional licences, pay a disproportionate amount of tax when they buy car insurance which makes their already expensive policies even harder to afford.
“Insurance Premium Tax at the current rate of 12% adds a huge £120 to a young driver’s £1,000 annual policy which may be further reason why more so many decide to run the gauntlet of driving with no insurance.
“We know from RAC research that the ability to drive is vital for so many people, with 80% of motorists telling us they would struggle to get by without a car.
“However, everyone who learns to drive must be properly insured so that in the event they’re involved in an accident they, and other road users, are protected from financial and legal risk.
“Those who drive without a licence are also driving without insurance. Their selfish action puts everyone else on the road – drivers, passengers, motorcyclists, cyclists and pedestrians – in both physical and financial danger.
In the midst of the fight against coronavirus, there were just 6% fewer uninsured drivers caught in 2020 than there were the year before – 105,641 compared to 112,557 in 2019.
This means those with provisional licences accounted for 14% of the total figure for 2020.
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