In Greater London, uninsured drivers have caused the same number of fatalities in the last 10 years as drink and drug drivers.
Temporary car insurance provider Tempcover have analysed Ministry of Justice data for the last decade, and used it to create a map that shows the worst-offending regions in England and Wales for driving without insurance. For Greater London, there are wins and losses.
- The number of people driving without insurance in Greater London is around 30% higher than average, making it one of the very worst places in England and Wales for uninsured driving offences.
- While the number of drink and drug driving prosecutions in Greater London is slightly lower than average, it’s still in the top four locations for fatalities caused by intoxicated drivers.
- Greater London also has the most fatalities caused by uninsured drivers of any part of England and Wales.
Speeding is the UK’s most prolific motoring crime, but there have been 78% more prosecutions for uninsured driving in London over the last decade than for speeding. While the overall number of prosecutions for motoring related crimes per 1,000 people is lower in London than the national average, it’s clear to see that there’s a strong trend towards certain illegal driving habits in England’s capital city.
“While most of us would never dream of deliberately breaking the law while we’re driving, it seems there are still plenty of drivers travelling Britain’s roads uninsured.” Says Tempcover’s CEO, Alan Inskip.
“When you look at public forums online, it’s easy to find people who have considered driving without insurance because they’re bringing a new car home from the forecourt, or because they’re planning a one-off trip in a friend’s vehicle. Rather than driving illegally in these circumstances, you can get affordable, temporary insurance cover for as little as an hour to make sure you don’t run into trouble.”
- Lancashire, West Yorkshire, Cheshire and the West Midlands also made England and Wales’ top five hotspots for uninsured drivers, with Greater London coming in at fourth place.
- Avon & Somerset have seen the fewest uninsured driving prosecutions over the last decade, and South Wales can proudly state that they have the fewest drink and drug drivers of any policing region in England and Wales.
Having dropped from 175,000 in 2008 to just over 79,000 in 2015, prosecutions for driving an uninsured vehicle have risen every year since, with 2018 seeing at least 95,280 uninsured drivers on the roads in England and Wales. According to the Motor Insurer’s Bureau, uninsured drivers caused over 26,000 injuries in 2018 alone – potentially because it’s the more reckless among us who are happy to take to the road uninsured.
See the full report here
