It is illegal to drive a motor vehicle without a valid insurance certificate covering you to use that vehicle at that time.
Driving without insurance is treated very seriously in the Magistrates Court because of the potential implications if you were to crash when uninsured.
For you to be found guilty of driving without insurance, the Prosecution only has to prove that you were indeed using the car on a public road at the time in question and it is down to you to prove that you had insurance, its not down to them to prove that you didn’t. This is because it would be nearly impossible fort the prosecutors to go to every insurance company in the country and check that you weren’t insured, and so you must provide valid documentation that proves you were insured, or you will be found guilty.
One of the most common ways in which people get caught out with the no insurance law is that they may not actually drive the car, but the law states that you only have to have use of the vehicle in order to be liable for punishment under the no insurance law. Having use of the vehicle can simply mean having the vehicle parked on a public road outside your house and if it is not insured, then you can be prosecuted.
Another way in which a lot of people get caught out in relation to insurance offences is because they believe that their fully comprehensive insurance covers them to drive a vehicle owned by another person with their permission. A lot of fully comprehensive insurance policies do not actually have this type of cover as of right. This element of the cover is also sometimes dependant on the age of the policy holder.
It is of paramount importance that you understand the terms of your insurance policy and you make sure each and every time you drive either your vehicle or someone else’s that you are actually insured.
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