Tougher fines call to cut number of 'repeat' uninsured drivers

Judges have been urged to impose tougher fines on illegal drivers after police figures showed that, on average, the region's courts convict nine repeat offenders a day.

Between 2004 and 2008, West Yorkshire Police dealt with 7,566 uninsured drivers with previous convictions for the same offence – the fourth highest total in the country.

South Yorkshire Police dealt with 4,611 cases, while Humberside and North Yorkshire recorded 3,150 and 1,650 repeat convictions, respectively.

Although uninsured drivers can receive fines of up to 5,000, the Automobile Association (AA) said the average fine handed down to defendants was only about 200.

AA insurance expert Ian Crowder said: "Currently the fines that are meted out are too low; I certainly think the penalty should reflect the seriousness of the crime and at least reflect the value of the insurance that the defendant would have paid had they been an honest motorist.

"By using Automatic Number Plate Recognition equipment, police are becoming quite successful at identifying vehicles that are uninsured, and these figures are a good illustration of that success.

"Still, one in every 20 motorists on Britain's roads is driving without insurance and it is not a victimless crime. Whether uninsured drivers have an accident or not, ultimately honest motorists pay for it through an increase in premiums."

The figures, revealed by Justice Secretary Jack Straw in a parliamentary written answer to Liberal Democrat MP Norman Baker, show repeat convictions fell by almost half across the region over the five-year period, from 4,531 in 2004 to 2,354 in 2008.

The sharpest decline was seen in West Yorkshire, where the number of cases fell by 51.6 per cent from 2,167 to 1,049.

Improvements were also made in the other three police authority areas, with South Yorkshire (45.7 per cent), Humberside (44.5) and North Yorkshire (42.8) all reporting falls in the number of cases.

Police launched a crackdown after a series of surveys identified Yorkshire as one of the country's hotspots for uninsured drivers.

Earlier this year a suburb of Bradford, Barkerend, was dubbed the "uninsured driving capital of Britain" with nearly half its

motorists driving illegally without cover, according to an insurance database.

Bradford was ranked first in a "crash-for-cash" league table compiled by the Insurance Fraud Bureau (IFB), which revealed how criminals were deliberately crashing cars to make fraudulent insurance claims.

A new police team, involving more than 30 officers and collision investigators, was set up in Bradford last week to target illegal and reckless motorists.

Police also carried out a week-long operation in the city and Keighley, using a new 300,000 camera system to catch suspicious, uninsured or untaxed vehicles.

Motorists can check their vehicles are listed correctly on the Motor Insurance Database by visiting the website www.askmid.com.