MIB responds to the announcement in the Autumn Statement (23 November 2016) of an increase in Insurance Premium Tax (IPT).

Ashton West OBE, Chief Executive at MIB, said: “This further increase in IPT is disappointing; for millions of motorists, especially young drivers and those who are struggling to make ends meet. We know that for them they will have to make some tough choices. But taking to the road without motor insurance shouldn’t be one of them.

“It’s important that the cars on our roads are insured – it is not only legally required but also the consequences to the public in terms of road safety are quite significant. We believe that our efforts in recent years to tackle the problem have made a real difference. Now that progress is being undermined.

“The police are out on the roads all the time and they can see which cars don’t have insurance, using the Motor Insurance Database. The DVLA also help to tackle uninsured driving under the continuous insurance enforcement (CIE) scheme.

“Ultimately the bill for uninsured driving is paid by all honest motorists who fund the compensation for thousands of victims each year, who are involved in accidents caused by uninsured drivers.”

Background and facts

• MIB provides compensation to innocent victims involved in accidents with drivers who have no insurance or failed to stop. It is estimated that uninsured and untraced drivers kill 120 people and injure 29,000 every year.

• MIB is funded through a levy (£244m in 2016) on all companies offering motor insurance in the UK. As the numbers of uninsured vehicles has reduced (50% in 10 years), there has been a correlating drop in the number of claims reported to MIB. Consequently this has resulted in a reduction in the levy.

• In 10 years (since 2004) the estimated number of uninsured vehicles on UK roads has nearly halved to 1 million. This is due to a combination of enforcement and awareness campaigns (see www.goneinseconds.org.uk).

  • Nearly 2,500 uninsured vehicles are seized by Police each week.
  • 14,000 Insurance Advisory Letters (IALs) are issued each week under the Continuous Insurance Enforcement (CIE) scheme to registered keepers where no record of insurance can be found.
  • MIB manages the Motor Insurance Database - the only central record of all insured vehicles the UK. Motorist can check their vehicle is on the database at www.askMID.com.
  • The MID is used by the police to identify uninsured vehicles and by DVLA to identify vehicles kept without insurance.

Driving without insurance – the consequences

• Vehicle seized by police
• £300 fixed penalty
• £150 plus £20/day to recover the vehicle
• 6 penalty points and/or disqualification
• PLUS proof of insurance before the vehicle can be returned
• Seized vehicles which are not claimed within 14 days can be sold or crushed – 30% are never reclaimed

Continuous Insurance Enforcement (CIE) scheme – the consequences

• This law was introduced in 2011 and is enforced by comparing the registered keeper records kept by DVLA with the insurance records on the MID
• The penalties under CIE include:
  • a fixed penalty of £100
  • having the vehicle clamped, seized and destroyed
  • Court prosecution and a fine of up to £1,000