CCTV To Catch Uninsured Cars At Petrol Stations
Shockingly, there are approximately 1.4 million drivers on our roads who are not insured. That is as many as 1 in 25 drivers. If you are involved in a car crash with an uninsured driver, depending on your insurance provider, it is likely to affect your insurance premiums and any no claims bonus you have accrued. Insuring your car is just as important a part of vehicle maintenance as MOTs, regular servicing, and checking your car tyre treads, and Downing Street have now come up with a new plan to crack down on these uninsured drivers.
Currently many petrol stations already use automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras which only allow drivers to fill their cars with fuel after the camera has captured and logged their number plate. This is an attempt to deter people from driving off without paying for their fuel. Under the new plans, these cameras will cross-reference with the DVLA’s database and any vehicles that are flagged as uninsured or untaxed will not be able to pump fuel into their car. As you can imagine, this would quickly ensure that anyone who wanted to drive would first have to insure and tax their car (just like the rest of us do already!).
Some petrol retailers are less than happy about the idea, as they say it puts their cashiers at risk from angry, uninsured drivers (as well as the angry drivers currently complaining about fuel prices!). What do you think?