Car insurers and the DVLA are cracking down on motorists who fail to declare any points they have on their licence when arranging insurance.
Insurance companies and the driver licencing body have teamed up to develop a new licence checking system to catch out the estimated six million UK drivers who provide false information every year in attempt to reduce their car insurance premium.
DVLA figures estimate that around 16 per cent of the 35 million or so motorists on UK roads fail to disclose the whole truth when submitting car insurance applications – by neglecting to mention points on their licence for speeding or declaring any prior driving bans, for instance. According to estimates from the Association of British Insurers (ABI), last year alone, 180,675 drivers could have provided false details, reports the Daily Mail – adding around £50 to the insurance cost for honest motorists.
However, those who fail to disclose the whole truth when setting up their insurance – as many of them fear that insurers may fail to cover them or quote them too high a price – could see their policy voided should they need to claim after having a crash.
This will allow insurers to price much more accurately and should reduce premiums for honest motorists.
Examples of fraudulent behaviour caught out by the ABI include one driver failing to mention four past insurance claims and a three-year prison sentence for a motoring offence, another trying to use a pseudonym to get around their low credit rating and one who tried to doctor their licence to erase driving convictions.
The new system, named ‘MyLicence’ has resulted from cooperation between the DVLA and Motor Insurers’ Bureau, with insurers able to access accurate information regarding motorists’ driving histories.
The transport minister, Claire Perry, told the Daily Mail: “MyLicence is good news for motorists and good news for the motor insurance industry.”
“This will allow insurers to price much more accurately and should reduce premiums for honest motorists.”
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