This article is from page 6 of the 2012-06-19 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 6 JPG
THERE are now more than 3,000 uninsured drivers in Clare, new figures released by an insurers watchdog have revealed, with these offenders being held up as responsible for hiking up the premiums of lawabiding drivers.
The figures have been released by the Irish Brokers Association which has called for Clare Gardaí to be given the power to confiscate the cars of uninsured drivers.
“There are 51,725 licensed private cars in Clare and it is estimated that 3,100 of these could be uninsured,” Brian McNelis, Director of General Services at the Irish Brokers Association told The Clare People .
He continued, “What the general public in Clare may not know is that these uninsured drivers could be indirectly costing them an additional € 30 on their annual car insurance premiums.
“The UK have now made it illegal to own an uninsured vehicle, even if it is kept off the roads, in an attempt to stamp out uninsured driving.
“However, we believe that such measures may be a little harsh on those who have fallen on hard times and have had to take their car off the road for a period of time.
Mr McNelis went on to say, “We do, however, feel that the current penalties are not acting as a sufficient deterrent and would urge compliant drivers to report those that don’t have insurance as they are ultimately paying their insurance for them.”
Motor insurance offences are pun- ishable by a fine of up to € 2, 500, disqualification of one year or more for a first offence, and two years or more for a second offence, and, at the discretion of the court, a term of imprisonment not exceeding six months, though these maximum penalties are rarely imposed.
Where the court decides not to impose a disqualification, drivers convicted of a first offence of driving without insurance will incur five penalty points on their licence record in addition to any other penalty imposed by the court.