Car Insurance News
Police confiscate millionth uninsured car
21 August 2012
Car insurance is an essential purchase for all motorists but despite the misery those without cover cause thousands of unlucky drivers every year, many people continue to flout the law.
This is why car insurers have welcomed the news that the police have seized the millionth vehicle found on the road without this essential paperwork.
Today (August 21st), West Midlands Police took the nation's tally of confiscated cars that have been found on the road without at least third party, fire and theft cover into seven figures.
This highlights the progress the police and the Motor Insurers' Bureau (MIB) have made in the battle against thoughtless individuals who fail to buy car insurance.
Cover can be expensive - which is a bugbear for younger motorists in particular - and therefore it is sensible for all drivers to get the best deal available by searching for a cheap car insurance quote online.
Since 2005, the police have had the power to stop any vehicles identified as being driven without the proper insurance and every day since then, an average of 500 cars, vans and motorbikes have been halted and confiscated.
Furthermore, nearly one-third (30 per cent) of all of these autos are crushed.
West Yorkshire and the West Midlands have been identified as the most prevalent areas for motorists to risk driving without the proper cover and in the West Midlands alone, one uninsured vehicle is seized every hour.
They are identified by officers armed with automatic number plate recognition technology, which compared registration numbers against data provided by the MIB-operated Motor Insurance Database.
Bordesley Green in Birmingham is officially the number one hotspot in the UK for motorists taking to the road without the correct paperwork, with the worst record for uninsured driving in the UK coming in at eight times the national average.
Across the UK, there are an estimated 1.2 million uninsured drivers and the West Midlands makes up more than 60 per cent of the top 20 worst postcodes in the nation.
West Yorkshire comes in second with 25 per cent.
The Bradford areas of Whitefield and Great Horton, Manchester boroughs West Gorton and Cheetham Hill and Upper Edmonton in London have been identified by the MIB as hubs for this sort of crime.
But why are so many people still risking having their car confiscated or even crushed?
According to MIB research, many people fail to purchase the correct car insurance because they do not understand the law and the consequences of flouting these regulations.
Furthermore, they lack awareness in terms of the cost of car insurance and many believe they can get away with not covering their vehicle.
Chief executive of the MIB Ashton West was quoted by Insurance Age as saying: "Although we have made significant progress in recent years with the level of uninsured driving having reduced by 30 per cent, we still need to tackle some persistent offenders."
"That is why we are working with police and community leaders to engage people in these areas and improve their understanding and awareness of the law as well as the consequences."
The MIB handles over 30,000 claims annually from victims involved in accidents with hit-and-run and uninsured drivers, who are responsible for killing 160 people and injuring more than 23,000 annually.
Furthermore, motorists without this cover add £30 to every annual premium and cost over £500 million a year.
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