The Rise and Fall of the Uninsured Driver

CHESTER, England, May 23, 2011 -

- One in Six Drivers on the Roads are Uninsured

- Continuous Insurance Enforcement will Make Over Half of Motorists
More Vigilant when Insuring their Car

- Shopping Around at Renewal Time is Crucial - Motorists Can Save
GBP282 on Average

Research by moneysupermarket.com (
www.moneysupermarket.com/) shows uninsured drivers are currently rife
on our roads, with one in six admitting to the offence. As well as being a
danger to other drivers, uninsured drivers also add GBP30* to the cost of a
car insurance policy.

However from June, a new law called Continuous Insurance
Enforcement (CIE) will make owning a motor vehicle without valid insurance
illegal unless it has been declared off road, with greater penalties being
introduced for those who flout the rules.

Anyone who owns a motor which isn't declared as SORN
(Statutory Off Road Notification), MUST have valid car, van or motorbike
insurance for it or face a fixed penalty notice and possible further legal
action.1

The research by Britain's number one comparison site found a
worrying amount of uninsured drivers on UK roads, with one in six motorists
(16 per cent) having broken the law by driving a car they weren't insured to
drive. Seven per cent admitted breaking the law by getting behind the wheel
of their own car with no cover, while an additional seven percent admit to
having driven someone else's car without insurance. Two per cent admitted to
driving their own car uninsured in between renewing their insurance policy.2

Peter Harrison, car insurance expert at moneysupermarket.com
(www.moneysupermarket.com/car-insurance/), said "The number of drivers
prepared to hit the road without insurance is a huge concern. It is illegal
to get behind the wheel without adequate cover and should you be involved in
a crash when not insured you could face thousands of pounds in liability, a
conviction including six points on your license as well as charges of up to
GBP5,000."

Further research from moneysupermarket.com found over half of
motorists (56 per cent) said CIE would make them more vigilant and encourage
them to shop around to find a better deal on their car cover, and a quarter
(27 per cent) already make certain they are continuously insured. However, a
shocking ten per cent said CIE wouldn't affect how they insured their car as
they would just accept the fine if caught without cover.3

Talking about the launch of CIE, Pete Harrison said: ""With
CIE legislation coming into force next month, it should help drive down the
number of uninsured drivers on our roads. It also means ALL motorists need to
be vigilant of their insurance renewal dates - especially leisure drivers or
motorbike enthusiasts who only use their vehicles occasionally and let their
insurance lapse in the meantime; they need to declare their vehicle as SORN
or renew!

"With insurance premiums rising on average by 44p per day, or
by 31 per cent last year,4 shopping around for the best deal at renewal time
is crucial to ensure you aren't paying over the odds for your car insurance.
The average saving on an annual car insurance policy using
moneysupermarket.com is GBP282, so I urge everyone to do their research and
not automatically accept their renewal without checking there isn't a better
alternative."

Ashton West, Chief Executive at the Motor Insurers' Bureau,
said: "The change in law is a stepping up of enforcement activity, so that
not only those vehicles driven without insurance will be caught. Now the
registered keeper must make sure that their vehicle is insured all the time.

"In order to make sure everyone is aware of the new scheme, a
national awareness campaign will be shown on satellite and terrestrial TV
channels.

"Around four percent of vehicles have no motor insurance at
any given time and this needs to change so that is why this new enforcement
approach is so important."

Notes to Editors:

* - Source: www.mib.org.uk/Media+Centre/en/Key+Facts/Default.htm

1 In a bid to protect motorists from uninsured drivers the
Road Safety Act 2006 included Continuous Insurance Enforcement (CIE). This is
due to be brought in from May 23 2011 and will mean anyone who is registered
as an owner of a vehicle, which isn't registered as SORN (Statutory Off Road
Notification), MUST have valid car insurance for it or face a penalty.

www.direct.gov.uk

www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/OwningAVehicle/Motorinsurance/DG_186696?pro=stayinsured

www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2006/49/section/22

(Due to the length of this URL, it may be necessary to copy and paste
this hyperlink into your Internet browser's URL address field. Remove the
space if one exists.)

2 Opinium Research carried out an online poll of 2019 British
adults from 11 - 15 February 2011.

Results have been weighted to nationally representative criteria.
www.opiniumresearch.com.

3 Web Poll conducted by moneysupermarket.com

New legislation will make it illegal to keep a vehicle that's
uninsured. Will this change the way you insure your car?

- Yes - I'll automatically renew with my existing provider (8.1%)

- Yes - I'll be more vigilant and shop around to find the best quote
(55.8%)

- No - I'll deal with a fine if necessary (9.7%)

- No - I already ensure I'm continuously insured (26.5%)

Total Votes: 1004 Voting Ends: 07/05/2011

4 The rising cost of car insurance

Over the past year car insurance quotes have increased on
average by 31%. The average moneysupermarket.com quote has gone from GBP519
to GBP680 (44p per day). Figure calculated using 21,370,762 enquiries made
between 11/01/2010 and 13/01/2011.

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