Nearly a fifth of motorists would not inform their insurer if they picked up penalty points while driving, new research by RAC Insurance has found – potentially putting nearly seven million drivers at risk of holding invalid insurance, as well as future prosecution.
The data also shows that a quarter (25%) of motorists surveyed who already have penalty points did not inform any organisation when they received them.
Whether they did this knowingly or unwittingly, it effectively means more than 700,000 motorists could now be driving without valid car insurance.
The implications of not declaring penalty points are serious with motorists risking having a worthless insurance policy, and hefty penalties from the police. If they were to be involved in an accident they could then face further penalty points, an unlimited fine and be disqualified from driving. The police could even seize and potentially destroy the uninsured vehicle.
Problems could also arise should a driver need to make a car insurance claim for any other reason – an insurer could point blank refuse the claim, cancel or void the policy or immediately increase the premium. If the policy is cancelled or voided this could also affect a motorist’s ability to take out insurance with other providers. |
Taxi-apps warning |
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Motorists signing up to the booming taxi-hailing apps to make money are breaking the law, warns one insurer.
Wales-based Gocompare says owners who want to make money out of private hire must get commercial taxi-insurance cover or risk not being insured if there is an accident or personal injury claim, and having their vehicle seized by police. |
If a motorist drives as part of their job, they might also be expected to declare any penalty points, with some employers demanding a full, clean licence depending on the occupation.
Yet the RAC Insurance research found only around one in 10 motorists surveyed (13%) would plan on informing their employer if they received points in the future.
Clearly better
Allianz Insurance has relaunched its personal lines policy wording for its Clear private car product.
The refreshed design aims to make the policy easier for customers to read and understand.
To identify areas for improvement Allianz reviewed feedback from a variety of external sources including its network of national and independent brokers.