driving without insurance

macduf

As its my 1st post I would be grateful for any input to a problem that has arisen.
Xmas day I gave my Daughter permission to drive my car which is Fully comp with only me to Drive. The Police pulled her over for no reason and said she was not insured, when she rung me I told her that she was insured on her own policy which is Fully comp so on this info they let her drive home. Upon checking her policy she is not insured mainly cos she is under 25. The reason she was driving it was that her car was written off 2 weeks ago by a hit and run driver. It is a 100% genuine mistake,
1, Does it make any difference?
2, I assume they have the power to pull you over for no reason?
3. One of the 2 female Police officers was very arrogant and disrespectful and about my Daughters age at 21 they were actually arguing outside the Police car whilst my Daughter was sat in the back, about wether you can drive someone else,s car whilst fully comp.
Thanks for any info.

mrcow

Policies will vary.

If her policy allows her to drive other cars it will clearly state it. Some do, some don't.

You'd need to check her policy......and to answer your first question, no, ignorance is not a valid excuse.

TroysMum

Ignorance is not a valid excuse, but if it went to court it is at the courts discresion.
A colleague of mine drove home one night and got stopped. He was driving a friends company car and his friend had assured him he was insured. It turned out he wasnt. He was summonsed to court and the judge used his discresion and he walked away scot free as it was a genuine mistake.

iceicebaby

It is up to the driver to ensure that they have adequatecover BEFORE they drive the car.

Fully comp insurance does not give you the automatic right to drive other cars, it depends on the policy.

Your daughter should have known the terms of her policy, or checked her policy documents if she wasnt sure.

espresso

Look at this from another angle, what if you had an accident with another car, who thought that they were insured but were not! Even if her comprehensive insurance did cover her to drive another vehicle, it would most likely only be basic third party cover.

chilli_dog

your daughter may have been pulled because she may have been driving in a way that attracts the police, ie doing dead on 30 or indicating way in advance of a junction, remember tis the drink driving season.

Also most insuarance policies now are on line direct to the police so they are able to determine who is insured and who is not. Was your daughter given a producer for her documents?

If not then she is probably ok, lesson learnt?

soolin

One other thing..if your daughter had her own car witten off two weeks ago is she sure she is still insured and that her policy did not cease in part as soon as she submitted a claim?

raskazz

In this case, even if she had been over 25, the driving other cars cover would probably not apply anyway. This is because, after a total loss, normally all policy benefits (including driving other cars) cease until a new vehicle is substituted onto the policy.

The usual penalty is an IN10 conviction with 6-8 points, plus a fine.

soolin

Thanks raskazz, I was wondering if that was the case as I remember something similar happened when my own car was written off three years ago.

Bennifred

Maybe you could phone your own insurer and get your daughter put temporarily on your insurance until her own is sorted out? Not worth allowing her to drive uninsured, for lots of reasons.........

fas3robinj

Just to answer one of the original questions:

A uniformed police officer has the right to stop any road user at any time. They don't normally have to state the reason. We are legally required to give our name, address, owners name, owners address if asked. We don't have to provide insurance documents or driving license on the spot...but if unable to do so may be required to produce them as soon as possible at a Police station.

Did they issue a form (an HO/RT1 form) asking her to produce documents within 7 days? http://www.met.police.uk/askthemet/hort1.htm

If they did then a prosecution is still possible. If not then assume there will be no further outcome and put it down to experience.

Hope that helps.