Caught without insurance (didn't know it had expired) any recourse?

rodenal

maninthestreet wrote: »

I would NEVER lend my car to anyone else, no matter who they were. Any insurance they have for another car would only cover them for third party claims ONLY - they could write-off my car and leave me with no way of recovering the cost of replacing it.

True about third party only, but in my case if my father borrows my £2k car then bins it into the nearest field (obviously assuming no injuries etc) I wouldn't be too worried about him being able to replace the car and so would have no hesitation in letting him drive it

anotherbaldrick

rodenal wrote: »

True about third party only, but in my case if my father borrows my £2k car then bins it into the nearest field (obviously assuming no injuries etc) I wouldn't be too worried about him being able to replace the car and so would have no hesitation in letting him drive it

However never lend your car to someone you have spawned.

Grumpysally

One question, why was the driver pulled over in the first place?

shaun_from_Africa

At a guess, the police car had an ANPR camera (automatic number plate recognition) and this would be linked directly to the UK insurance database.
As the covernote had expired, this would have alerted the police within seconds.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Police-enforced_ANPR_in_the_UK

scheming_gypsy

darkwarrior wrote: »

Such a shame they ignored your 40 years of experience and good driving. They're hardly teaching you a lesson you didn't already know, just punishing you the same they punish someone who hasn't been insured for 3 months to intentionally avoid paying. The shock would be enough to make sure you never do it again even if it is an honest mistake. Like I said, not much reward in being an honest citizen.

Thanks for sharing your story.

who's to decide that it's a risk worth taking?

your brother-in-law's story. Who takes the blame if the copper let him carry on driving and he canned it 5 minutes later? does the copper take the blame for letting an uninsured driver carry on driving or do they all turn up and dance a little jig at the funeral.

With the one with 40 years experience, who decides that it was an honest mistake? the police and courts don't know him to know that it was an honest mistake and he hadn't just for sick of paying for 40 years and never crashing.

We don't have time machines to go back and change the future 'just in case'.... so if you get stopped without insurance you get treated the same, regardless of the reason.

horse76

My OH got caught without insurance 11 years ago, we weren't living together at the time and I hit the roof when I found out. He thought the car was still on the insurance through his employer at the time, but never thought to check that it still was - his fault entirely. He got 6 points and £150 fine. He had to endure higher premiums for the next 4 years until he was able to get the points removed from his licence.

OH's sister was caught with no insurance with her 2 really young children in the car, she said she never realised it needed renewed as she'd just split up with her husband. She had to make arrangements to get picked up as the car was towed away. She then fell out with us because we wouldn't lend her the money to get her car back from the pound. We didn't lend her the money because it was her fault she was in that situation in the first place!

spiro

maninthestreet wrote: »

they could write-off my car and leave me with no way of recovering the cost of replacing it.

Its called the Small Claims Court.

xoleeb

spiro wrote: »

Its called the Small Claims Court.

which is no good if they havent got the any money to pay is it?

George_Michael

Winning a case in the SCC doesn't guarantee that you will get a single penny of what you are awarded.
If the person you take to court doesn't have the money or has it but decides not to pay, you might be fighting for a very long time before you see any return.

boyse7en

scheming_gypsy wrote: »

why did he have to provide it at any time? Having a driving license isn't a requirement of having insurance, having a driving license is a requirement of being allowed to drive but you don't need a license to be insured and you definitely don't need to provide details.

I had to provide a photocopy of my driving license to e-Bike when I insured my motorcycle. It was part of their terms and failure to provide would result in cancellation of the policy.
Whether they can/should be able to do it is a moot point, but some companies certainly insist on seeing licenses.