Would You Ever Consider Driving Without Insurance?

[Fidgits]

Following on from This Thread I wondered if any LOC members would consider driving without insurance...

[AltezzaScott]

Good topic Ian,

It really winds me up, because they are on about increasing insurance premiums because of the amount of UNinsured drivers on the roads.

To me the solution is simple.... increase their fines to about £2500

The reason there are so many people doing it, it because it is cheaper to get fined than it is to get insured!!!

[Fidgits]

To me the solution is simple.... increase their fines to about £2500

The reason there are so many people doing it, it because it is cheaper to get fined than it is to get insured!!!

I agree.

I mean, the more they raise insurance prices, the more people will take the risk.

Consider, you get caught for driving without insurance, you get a 1000 quid fine and some points (which wont bother you cos you dont have insurance!)

I think they should reduce insurance prices, and increase the penalties, as you say, much higher fine, and perhaps a short prison sentance.

Also, due to the 'camera enforcement policy' I think people probably think there is less chance of getting caught.

I am also running a similar poll on TOC to see if there is any difference.

You can view the TOC poll here

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[tony_hetherington]

My first car (sorry guys, I keep referring to this, but it is a good example).....the Escort Cosworth.

If I had driven for 1yr without insurance, compared to 1 yr with insurance, I could have been caught, and fined, THREE times, and it STILL be cheaper than insuring the car for one year.

It is still a similar sort of case with my lexus insurance. No longer is it silly money, but in simplistic eyes, the chance of getting caught and then the fine, versus the year on year obliteration of your wallet really is tempting.

I would never drive without insurance.....I would not break the law like that, and the pride I take in my cars has a massive effect on it too, but it really does make you think sometimes, and you can certainly understand why others do it.

The strange thing is, we're one of the most expensive coutnries in the world for car insurance. I wonder why?

[ColinBarber]

Insure the car and not the driver. That way it is much easier to check if a vehicle is being driven with insurance - have a disc like the tax disc.

[AltezzaScott]

Insure the car and not the driver. That way it is much easier to check if a vehicle is being driven with insurance - have a disc like the tax disc.

Thats a good idea Colin.....

[tony_hetherington]

But an 18yr old 6 point-strong kid is far more of a risk than an advanced-driving-instructor-45-yr-old-no-points bloke.

So how would you distinguish the cost differential between the two? And that, I guess, is why they don't do it like that!

[stevenage_saint]

It gaulls that I have to foot uninsured drivers. Even a hike to £2500 is to little, my view is a £10,000 fine, band from driving 12 months, made to re-sit the test, and the car crushed. I also think that more should be done to takle this than putting speed cameras left right and centre, as the more uninsured drivers that are on the road the greater the chance of an accident with them. Maybe the insurence compannies could set up a databse like they have for insurence fraud where the owners details are stored to confirm they are insured or if they have taken the car off the road and no longer using it.

[Bobski]

Have to say along the same lines as saint.

BUT if they had the money (which i pressume they dont) they could afford the insurance.

2500 fine or community service (lets face it they wont pay).

Repeat offenders 5000 fine and or jail

The more they offend the more they get#

OH and crush the car, pressuming they own it and havnt just "Borrowed" without consent.

If they are assylum seakers, deport the f :tsktsk: t :tsktsk: timewasters.

BOUT TIME THIS COUNTRY STOOD UP FOR THE DECENT FOLK, INSTEAD OF BEING SO BLEEDIN SOFT!!!!

[Fidgits]

Gotta say i agree with you there Bobski.

The decent honest workers in this country are treated like doormats by the scum of society and our goverment treats us like ATM machines!!!

I'd like to know who voted for not having insurance? And whether that was a serious vote!

[Bazza]

another point to consider:

if another car gets hit by an uninsured driver, the owner may be lucky and claim of their own insurance for repairs to the car

now what if the insured driver hits a person and disables them in some way, or even worse kills them, the person or the families of that person might well receive nothing, the consequences of this could be huge

[TonyGoose]

Well if enough people start driving without insurance...

they're bound to start crashing into each other.

That way, ins co's won't have that excuse to use.

So, maybe our premiums will reduce.

Oh yeah, and they might find wmd's in iraq too :)

[aido]

Insure the car and not the driver. That way it is much easier to check if a vehicle is being driven with insurance - have a disc like the tax disc.

I'd never read this before I just posted in the other thread and you've thought of the same idea :)

I've only ever been with Direct Line so assumed that all insurers took registration details - is that the case?

As a total theory, if they introduced disks like this why don't they introduce RFID tagging - they could automate barrier systems etc that wouldn't let you through if you didn't have a working RFID tag, and they could get someone to perform manual intervention to check and impound / fine where necessary.

Yeah it'd be an inconvenience but think of the money it would save long term....

[twotone]

Moved over here from the Republic of Ireland 5 years ago and amazed that only tax discs are displayed in the window. At home in Ireland you have to have TAX, INSURANCE and MOT discs in the window.

How hard can it be to introduce the same rules here?

[Chris.S]

So who are the two who said they currently driving without insurance :o

[jac114]

i would never drive without insurance.. purely from an accident view.. and thats not worring about the car...g.o.d forbid if i did hit a person without insurance

1. I would be gutted

2. I would have my **** hauled into court with no leagl cover

3. I would be paying compensation for the rest of my life..

I choose insurance for those reasons alone

[GreyBeard]

by the time you get here, you're probably dropping off, but still, i'll give you the dubious benefit of my thoughts.

there is already a database set up by the insurance companies into which basic details are entered about every insured car and it's driver/s. this info is immediately available to police so they can do a roadside check. so, why not use the numberplate recognition cameras that are already on the roads and simply transmit details to police waiting down the road, so they can stop them and take some action. of course, if i was a sceptical sort of person, i might think that the police don't do it, cos they would only catch uninsured drivers WHO HAVEN'T GOT THE MONEY ANYWAY, SO FINES WOULDN'T BE PAID! (40% of fines go unpaid now!)

Colin's suggestion about insurance discs in the window, and they cover the car not the person. it would work if the displayed insurance simply covered third parties, and drivers took out another policy to cover damage to their own car. i know that this wouldn't allow for riskier drivers, but as it is, the insurance companies already pay up from a general fund to injured people (drivers, passengers, or pedestrians) if they are hit by uninsured drivers.

and the basic 'third party only' cover could be subsidised from the fuel tax, thus making it easier for everyone to afford the basic cover.

not sure if this makes sense to you, but i know what i mean!

[mudzs]

So are the people who say they would never drive with no insurance saying if it got to 5k they would pay it or simply not drive, as i for one could not aford 5k but have to drive to earn a living so would be very tempted .

[Fidgits]

So are the people who say they would never drive with no insurance saying if it got to 5k they would pay it or simply not drive, as i for one could not aford 5k but have to drive to earn a living so would be very tempted .

Nope,

What I'm saying is, if my Insurance went up to 5 grand, I'd sell the Lex and buy a 1 litre Corsa, if that was too expensive on insurance, i'd buy a couple of hundred quid heap and insure it 3rd party only, and if i still couldn't afford it, well, I'd be on public transport.

What is worrying though, is that 3 LOC members say they are driving without insurance! (compared to TOC, with no votes for currently uninsured). I mean, if you can afford a Lexus, surely you can afford to insure it!?!

[tony_hetherington]

this info is immediately available to police so they can do a roadside check. so, why not use the numberplate recognition cameras that are already on the roads and simply transmit details to police waiting down the road

Greybeard.....I don't think you're going to like the answer to this one.

They can do it. They have the ANPR cameras in patrol cars. If they drive along and it picks up a plate, it beeps, so the coppers know to pull it over. I saw a review of this system once. Where they were driving in Birmingham, London etc. etc......they had to TURN THE SYSTEM OFF, simply because it beeped every 2 seconds, and they weren't able to perform other duties.

It's a horrid state of affairs, but there simply isn't the man-power to do something about it.

What is worrying though, is that 3 LOC members say they are driving without insurance! (compared to TOC, with no votes for currently uninsured). I mean, if you can afford a Lexus, surely you can afford to insure it!?!

Ian.....I can't beleive 3 people have said they already do it !!?? A car like a Lexus you just would not "not insure". Perhaps they were joke votes!

[Claire G]

My dad got rear-ended by a car whose driver decided it was best to scarper. Dad and several witnesses got the make and model of the car, the majority of the reg number and a description of the driver.

The police duly attended and took all the details giving dad a crime reference number. Several weeks later he got a letter saying that the police did not have enough evidence to prosecute. 'Never mind' says dad, 'can you let my insurers have the driver details to go through the insurance for the damage'....

Turns out the driver was uninsured. Police sent him a letter asking him to present his details at the local station as it's illegal to drive without insurance. Surprise, surprise, the driver never showed, the letter was never followed up and my dad whistled for the costs. To add insult to injury, they wouldn't give the insurers the driver's details as it's against the data protection act :shutit:

Any wonder why people don't bother with insurance? It's bloomin expensive, and there's little to no chance of being caught. I'd never do it, but I have morals and the luxury of a regular income to help pay for mine.

[imi]

Ian.....I can't beleive 3 people have said they already do it !!?? A car like a Lexus you just would not "not insure". Perhaps they were joke votes!

I got pulled up by acopper, regarding the number plate a while back.. any he told me to get the plates changed..

He asked me if i owned the car, i said yes, then he said, if i could buy a like that, then i would be able to afford the insurance B) , but the thing is, he never checked ot took any details from me.. ..

He just got out of his vehicle and had a look at the lettering on my reg plate, that's it..

so basically anyone could have (nicked) or been driving my car and they haven't checked out the drivers details..

[tony_hetherington]

Similar sort of thing happened to me, Imi....

Got stopped for my "TONY" number plate. Copper #2 sat in my passenger seat, copper #1 in the patrol car checking my details. Copper #2 in my seat said to me "oh, i doubt you'd have a car like this and not insure it" !!! Dead true......but that's cos I'm one of the responsible ones though!!

I'm certain they did check my details, because copper #1 just came over and gave a thumbs up to the guy in my seat, and I assume he'd checked my details (not nicked, not on warrant etc)

[Fargo]

.

and the basic 'third party only' cover could be subsidised from the fuel tax, thus making it easier for everyone to afford the basic cover.

if people cant afford to insure the car they drive, then they should get a smaller car that is cheaper to insure,, or get the bus. owning and running a car is a bonus not a right..

[NaaN]

i agree with having insurance even tho it is getting ridiculous in price, it cost me £3500 last year (20 year old at the time) to insure my lexus, since i dont own it anymore i have a small run around which suits me fine for around the town, economical too and the insurance is £1000 which is much more afforadable.

I have the need to travel long distances sometimes and borrow one of my dads cars, both mercedes, high spec powerful machines, to have me fully insured would cost approx £5000 (SL500), but luckily my insurance policy covers me third party for any car as long as i have the owners consent.

I had been tempted before to drive them but i always had it in the back of my mind "what if i get pulled", "what if i crash"

A crash isnt necesserily going to be my fault, but at least this way i am fully legal. Even though the policy covers damage to third party ONLY, I feel safer knowing this.

I think that putting the fines higher etc will not stop drivers driving without insurance, what they need to do is enforce penaltys upon people like this, for example, prison sentence, fine, confiscation of goods/belongings to cover the costs of the fine.

At least this way if someone thinks about driving without insurance they will have the threat of losing the car (if they own it) or other things like items from the house they may own or whatever.

I think the laws are too lenient, which is why people think "oh yeah insurance doesnt matter" Cos they can get away with a ridiculously small fine and some points, which as mentioned before is not going to make a difference due to them not having/getting insurance anyway !!!!!!

Regards

NaaN