Car insurance news
Anger as car insurance fines drop significantly
Car insurance firms are said to be furious after the latest Home Office statistics revealed that the average fine given to drivers without motor insurance dropped by 25% over the course of seven years.
According to the latest figures, the average penalty imposed by the courts for driving without car insurance fell from £224 in 1997 to just £169 in 2004.
Alistair Carmichael, the MP for Orkney and Shetland, was appalled at the revelation, saying, "The decrease in the average fine is indicative that driving without insurance is not taken seriously enough by the courts."
Adding fuel to the issue is the fact that prosecutions for failing to purchase car insurance rose from the 1997 figure of 257,689 to 322,816 in 2004.
Corrine Aldous from Duck2Water Car Insurance Services, the expert cheap car insurance providers, commented, "There just isn't enough of a deterrent to stop people driving without motor insurance, and the fact that prosecutions have risen so dramatically backs this up.
"Something needs to be done, and it needs to be done urgently."