Industry News from Yes Insurance

A majority of motorists are unable to recognise a fake vehicle registration certificate (V5C) against a real one, it has been revealed.

Of the 1300 drivers surveyed by the DVLA, only a fifth were aware of what the document is actually for.

Ringing, or cloning, the V5C is an activity that involves stealing car registration plates and documents and reproducing them, often for criminal gain.

It is on the rise, the body has warned. It may also invalidate a car insurance customer's no-claims policy, if a claim was to be made in relation to it.

And this is a distinct possibility, with 30,000 to 40,000 vehicles implicated by dodgy documents each year, according to the British Crime Survey.

"When purchasing a car, always check the serial number of the registration certificate," said John Moore, member of the DVLA's crime reduction unit.

Mr Moore will be taking questions from concerned motorists in an online chat on at 15:00 BST on Wednesday March 28th.

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