Industry News from Yes Insurance

Police in Wigan have launched a major crackdown on drivers who avoid paying tax and do not have car insurance.

Officers have been using the latest technology to snare those who are breaking the law, with the Automated Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) system being brought into use.

The results have been very positive for the police, with hundreds of cars being impounded and £65,000 in fines being collected in just five weeks.

"To date we have dealt with in excess of 700 vehicles. They have either been seized or the drivers have paid on-the-spot fines," Sergeant Ian Lamb told website Wigan Today.

"We are averaging 25-30 vehicle seizures a day. If vehicles are not taxed we find they are also often not insured," he added.

The ANPR System works by holding a comprehensive database of registration numbers and can tell whether or not they hold insurance and tax certificates.

If the system recognises the number plate of a car which is not abiding by the law, it will alert officers.

Statistics show that UK drivers are some of Europe's worst offenders when it comes to having car insurance, with more than one million uninsured cars on the road.

In 2005, the Motor Insurers' Bureau was forced to deal with over 40,000 claims from drivers who were involved in accidents with uninsured drivers.

© Adfero Ltd