One in 200 drivers caught driving uninsured

A total of 226,803 drivers in the UK have points on their licence for driving without insurance, according to a freedom of information (FOI) request from the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM).

The FOI request, directed to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA), has revealed that almost 195,000 full licence holders, and more than 31,000 provisional licence holders, have been caught driving without insurance and received points for doing so.

The total figure of more than 226,000 translates to one in 200 drivers. In the 17-35 age range, one in every 100 people with a full driving licence has points for driving uninsured.

Gender gap

The data also shows that, across both licence categories and all age groups, men are far more likely to commit the offence. In the 17-24 age category, men are four times more likely to have points on their licence for driving uninsured than women.

IAM chief executive Simon Best said: “These findings are shocking. Those 200,000 individuals who drive while uninsured place the burden back on those who abide by the law through higher premiums and potentially the cost of vehicle repair.

“The most concerning fact is that this could just be the tip of the iceberg, as these numbers only represent those who have been caught and penalised.

“Insurance fraud and uninsured driving are growing problems that need to be tackled through a co-ordinated approach from enforcement authorities. It is not acceptable that drivers pay up to £70 in higher premiums to compensate for those who ignore the law.”