Hi. Its Friday again and today Id like to talk about something non-finance related for a change.
Lets just say its down to personal experience…
If you have ever been involved in a car accident with an uninsured driver you will understand how ineffective the UK car insurance system is.
If you are hit by an uninsured driver even with fully comprehensive insurance in the UK it is likely that you will:
* Lose your no-claims bonus
* Have to pay a minimum excess of £350 on the costs of fixing your vehicle
There arent many options available when you insurance company tells you that the driver is uninsured.
You can claim through your insurance, losing your no claims bonus , £350 excess as well as an increased premium
OR
Take the uninsured driver to the small claims court (if they gave the correct name and address). Remember you also have to prove that the other driver caused the accident and was at the scene or you could end up paying their legal costs as well if you lose the case.
In the UK there is no way of identifying if a driver has valid car insurance when exchanging details at the scene of an accident. In some cases the other driver will be uninsured but how do legal law abiding drivers like ourselves confirm this? The short answer is that we cant until we have left the scene of the accident and the insurance company have done their insurance checks.
There are other less wealthy countries in Europe that have already adapted successful systems to prevent this situation and Id like to see the car insurance system in the UK updated for the 21st century.
I propose that we introduce the introduction of proof of car insurance in the UK by enforcing (by Law) the display of a car insurance disc in the windscreen of every vehicle showing the expiry date for insurance and the names of the drivers who are insured. I also propose to make it law to carry a booklet of detachable car insurance slips in your vehicle to exchange in the event of an accident. If the other driver is unable to provide this information then it will allow innocent law abiding drivers like myself to identify the driver is uninsured. At this point we can contact the police at the scene of the accident and prosecute the driver. This will also deter uninsured drivers.
If you are a British Citizen then please feel free to sign this electronic petition below sent to Gordon Brown the UK Prime Minister to improve the British car insurance system and subsequently deter uninsured drivers in this country http://tinyurl.com/np97b4
Uninsured drivers kill – Thank you for your support
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