Driving to Mot testing station without insurance

Paul_the_Painter

I've had TPFT with driving other cars, and fully comp without driving other cars.

Whilst it is true that most fully comp cover has DOC, and most TPFT doesn't. It is by no means a rule - and certainly don't rely on it.

The only thing that matters is what is written on your policy, not what you think, or the bod in the call centre thinks, but what is written on your policy.

Joe_Horner

Paul_the_Painter wrote: »

The only thing that matters is what is written on your policy, not what you think, or the bod in the call centre thinks, but what is written on your policy.

^^^ This.

Sadly, judging by a few of those Police shows on t'box at least some of the Police seem to be convinced that all DOC cover requires the car to be insured in its own right.

I borrow a friend's car fairly often using mine, which he has covered by a trade policy but hasn't chased the fact that it doesn't show on the MID (his problem, not mine). So whenever I drive it locally I make sure I have my certificate AND full policy document with me so I can point out that I have no such restriction.

If I'm taking it further (latest was to Devon to collect a boat) then a weekend's temp policy for 20 quid or so is worth it just to avoid the hassle - I may be in the right but do I really want to be stranded half-way down the M5 cos they don't believe me?

dacouch

Sgt_Pepper wrote: »

Just have the cover and remember your reg number, that's all there is to it.

I once had a very snotty traffic cop try to seize a client's Bentley which he'd lent to a friend. The office did not understand (And was not interested in discovering) what the MID list for true any driver cover. Under driving resrtiction the MID listed something like "No restriction".

My client rang me and I explained it to the officer, he was not interested and was quite rude. I offered him the Insurers phone number and he was not interested. I suggested he ring the MIB helpdesk for an explanation and confirmation the driver was covered, again he was not interested.

I only resolved it by ringing a senior officer at the police station who bothered to ring the Insurers.

Apparantly the officer was very annoyed he could not impound the car and offered no apology

forgotmyname

My insurance now states driving other cars is only on the condition the car is insured on the owners/keepers policy.

So driving cars for friends who have just bought it or taking them for MOTs is no longer an option.

I presume more companies will be doing the same sooner rather than later.

TrickyWicky

Sgt_Pepper wrote: »

As long as your mate has driving other vehicles they'll be fine. The database either says yes or no for driving other vehicles.

What database is that? the insurers or the MID? If the MID then the plog that pulled me on the M55 a few years back wasn't able to see this at all and I got a right 20 questions for it.

thenudeone wrote: »

The Police don't give leeway on insurance.

I beg to differ, as said above I got tugged on the M55 a few years back by some plod who couldn't prove I wasn't insured as they were closed so he questioned me over everything, took my details and said he'd contact the MID in the morning to check and then let me go. It's not all like road wars you know. I was expecting to spend the night in the cells but credit to the bloke he could see I wasn't trying to pull a fast one and let me go with a warning he'd be in touch if he needed to. Real grumpy accusative s*d to start with but decent enough by the time I was done with him

forgotmyname wrote: »

My insurance now states driving other cars is only on the condition the car is insured on the owners/keepers policy.

So driving cars for friends who have just bought it or taking them for MOTs is no longer an option.

I presume more companies will be doing the same sooner rather than later.

Without a doubt it's becoming increasingly hard to own a car these days isn't it. We're being stitched right up by the mob in power.

thenudeone

The MID database available to the police does have a flag to show whether cover is in place to cover other cars, but I wouldn't rely on every single insurer updating that field on the database correctly. Some insurers may take the view that as long as they've complied with their statutory obligation to list the policy against the vehicle, they won't bother with any other information.

And you can't find out whether your DOC cover is on the database by using the free enquiry at askmid.com - that doesn't even show who's insured, just the vehicle.

So if you are using DOC cover, it's always best to carry the certificate with you. That way, the police cannot legally seize the vehicle.

Sorry for regulars if this is a bit repetitive but it's worth repeating again and again - as long as you produce, when stopped, a valid certificate which covers your use of the car (including DOC), the police have no power to seize the vehicle, regardless of what's on the database, what the insurance call centre staff may say, or how firmly the officer believes that the driver is uninsured.
http://www.casecheck.co.uk/Default.aspx?tabid=1184&EntryID=17385

If you don't produce a certificate at the time then (even if you were actually insured) you will still have an uphill battle trying to recover your costs.

Notmyrealname

maninthestreet wrote: »

It's SORN, so it can't be used, or even parked, on the public highway. It will need to trailered to the MOT station, or on the back of a flat-bed truck.

Rubbish. It can be driven to and from a pre-booked MOT as long as it is insured.

mikey72

Notmyrealname wrote: »

Rubbish. It can be driven to and from a pre-booked MOT as long as it is insured.

That was already answered in post 8.

Aretnap

paddedjohn wrote: »

Ive never heard of a TPFT policy with drive other vehicle cover, i thought it only applied to some full comp policies?

It's not unknown. Last time I had TPFT it included driving other vehicles cover - that was probably seven or eight years ago though.

TrickyWicky

thenudeone wrote: »

regardless of what's on the database, what the insurance call centre staff may say, or how firmly the officer believes that the driver is uninsured.
http://www.casecheck.co.uk/Default.aspx?tabid=1184&EntryID=17385

However, this did not satisfy the police who phoned Saga and were informed by them (wrongly as it turned out) that Mr Burton was only insured to drive other cars under his policy if the other vehicle had its own insurance cover. According to the police computer the Honda had no cover. The police then seized the Honda under s165A of the Road Traffic Act 1988.

Just thought I'd back this up with my own experience as I have had this happen to me. I had my car written off a while back and used another car belonging to someone else. The insurers after a week of using it then informed me that my insurance was invalid because the other car must have it's own insurance cover on it. Not being a push over, I delved into the policy and asked them to point out where it said this. They gave me the page number and I read it to them over the phone - it said NOTHING about the other persons car having other insurance. Several hours, call centre ops and managers later we finally established that they had infact WRONGFULLY told me that the other persons car I was using needed its own insurance and that I was correct in my understanding and use of the DOC part of the policy.

Please people, if your insurers ever try to pull this trick on you (especially if the police are involved) check your policy with a fine tooth comb as the insurers are not always right and don't always know their own terms and conditions properly but jump to the easiest answer / conclusion so that they can get you off the phone. Had I not questioned it I could of been in serious trouble but because I did question it and examine it in detail, I saved my own back from a rod they had constructed for me.

Bottom line: Don't trust insurers.

What they don't tell you however is that when you get out of that car, it's no longer insured. It's YOU who are insured not the vehicle when using DOC cover. If driving a car thats not got its own cover in place the moment you step out of it the car becomes illegal if its on public land.