Uninsured drivers to face clamping
Ministers are giving new powers to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency which will mean that motorists who do not renew their car insurance could face having their car clamped on their driveway and then destroyed.
The new system will go live in June and force all car owners to have insurance for their vehicle at all times. There is one exception to this new rule and that would entitle the registered owner to be exempt from the insurance if they make an official declaration that the car is permanently off the road and not being driven.
Drivers who do not comply with the new rules will be sent a warning letter and fined £100 if they forget to insure their car on time, after this the car would be towed away and destroyed. Current figures estimate that one in 25 motorists is driving uninsured vehicles and 242,000 are convicted each year for uninsured driving.
Road safety minister Mr Penning said “Uninsured drivers injure 23,000 people each year and add £30 to every responsible motorist’s premium so we need to do everything we can to keep them off the roads. These new powers will help us to take targeted action while freeing up police time to deal with the hard core offenders”.
The DVLA will work in partnership with the Motor Insurers’ Bureau to identify vehicles from their database that are uninsured and drivers have been advised to check on their data base if they are unsure of their vehicles status.
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