Passing the dreaded driving test is undoubtedly one of the more exciting times in a person’s life. It is in many senses the very embodiment of new found freedom, in particular to a young person who finds themselves sudden with the ability to travel anywhere and most likely improve their social abilities greatly.
This excitement often leads of rash decision making in regards to driving immediately, without considering some of the more basic motor laws. For example, driving without insurance is illegal and can lead to a hefty fine and/or points on your licence. Neither of which you as a newly passed driver needs, to add to the other expenses which driving entails.
In 2009 the MIB or Motor Insurers’ Bureau revealed a set of new statics which suggest that one in five young people are driving without insurance. These statistics were taken from the group of drivers aged seventeen to twenty who, as a group were four times over-represented in terms of their claims to the MIB.
These same statistics also showed that one in ten young drivers within the previously mentioned age bracket do not even realise that car insurance is a legal requirement for all drivers. This simply goes to show how lack of riving-related research can lead on to serious problems for young drivers.
In the last three years the Motor Insurers’ Bureau has noticed a distinct drop in the number of young people driving without insurance in the UK. This number, which was at nearly a quarter of a million in 2008 has now apparently dropped to approximately 125,000 which nearly a half of the original figure, in three years.
It’s believed that this decline is predominately due to a new method of tracking insured drivers and coercing uninsured drivers into setting theirs up. This new method is known as the Continuous Insurance Enforcement law, which has allowed the Motor Insurers’ Bureau to examine its database and compare it against DVLA records. This makes an easier job of tracking down uninsured drivers, who are then sent a warning letter followed by a steadily worsening series of penalties.
It’s obvious that driving without insurance is never worth the risk for a young driver, who will generally just have paid a considerable sum of money to pay for their first car. To then risk a potentially enormous fine and in turn to drive an expensive vehicle with no financial protection for it is a very dangerous and potentially life changing mistake.
Other than submitting to an overwhelming sense of excitement and social freedom there is no reason at all why a young driver should consider going out without real insurance, and even then this does not make the action and acceptable choice.
In the end it’s always better to find the cheapest insurance company possible, preferably one that caters exclusively to young drivers. In this way you can find the best most competitive price without risking your financial future on court costs and police fines.
This guest post was written by the lovely people of Just Motor Law, who are driving solicitors in Liverpool covering a variety of different motoring offences, including driving without insurance.