Police clamp down on uninsured drivers, today, City Rd

[hennypenny 10]

We were stopped today on City road by the police, who said that they had a camera which had taken our registration and compared it to their database showing us as not having any insurance.

 

The police said that they had the power to impound our car and we would have to pay to get it back.

 

Luckily a phone call to our insurance company convinced them that we were fully insured, having changed companies recently. Apparently our details have not yet made it to their database. We were advised to check that our insurance company put our details on the database, but when we checked with the insurance company once we got home, they said the details were submitted over 6 weeks ago, which means it is the database itself which is slow to update.

 

The police must have been having a checking up day, as there were several cars pulled over. I find it a bit scary that the police have the power to impound our car if we are not able to immediately convince them we are insured, and we would have to pay to get it back, when it is down to an error in their own database! They seemed to think that it was our responsibility to make sure we were entered onto the database, surely our only responsibility is to make sure we are fully insured?

[peardrops 10]

Hmmmmmmm interesting thread. My car insurance has expired and it is off road on private land. However I will be re-insuring on Friday when I am paid and will be driving over 100 miles on the following day.

 

I assume if I pass a cop car it will flag as uninsured although it will be insured. What documentation can I give them if I will have insured it over the phone the day before?

[Broody 10]

if i try and get car tax online and my insurance or MOT is due to run out of date, the database wont recognise i have insurance or mot, its very slow.

[Bloomdido 10]

There is a website somewhere where you can enter a registration number and find out if the car has insurance. It was posted on the forum some months ago.

[Dave650 10]

Good. I hope they caught some scum

[BoroughGal 10]

.....when it is down to an error in their own database!

 

The insurance side is not owned or maintained by the police, it's the responsibility of the insurance companies to make sure everything is current.

[Heyesey 11]

The insurance side is not owned or maintained by the police, it's the responsibility of the insurance companies to make sure everything is current.

 

What more can the insurance company do, though, once they've informed the police/DVLA that this car is now insured?

[*KIBI* 10]

Hmmmmmmm interesting thread. My car insurance has expired and it is off road on private land. However I will be re-insuring on Friday when I am paid and will be driving over 100 miles on the following day.

 

I assume if I pass a cop car it will flag as uninsured although it will be insured. What documentation can I give them if I will have insured it over the phone the day before?

 

Peardrops

 

Just make sure you take the telephone number of the insurance company with you on your trip, that way, if you do get pulled and told your car isn't insured, you can give them the tel.no to call the ins.Co.

 

I think it's a good idea that they are catching uninsured/unlicensed/ drivers, but they should have a better database, i mean, how many uninsured drivers went past as they stopped hennypenny, only to find out they WERE actually insured.....it's a disgrace really. If this was a trial, then fair enough, but it wasn't, as this piece of equipment has already passed trials....Supposedly???HMMMMMM!!!!!

[peardrops 10]

Thanks very much. I will keep names, numbers etc. I would never drive illegally but could imagine me being pulled!

[Strix 11]

peardrops - you should find a fax machine where you can receive a copy of your document too

[peardrops 10]

Ta Strix, not quite sure where I will find one but I will try!

[Greybeard 10]

The insurance side is not owned or maintained by the police, it's the responsibility of the insurance companies to make sure everything is current.

 

Which begs the question of should the police have the right to take action against you on the basis of information not held by them or a govt. agency ?

 

And should the insurance company be liable for your costs incurred as a result of the incorrect information supplied to the police ?