West Mercia Police have obtained over £12.9 million in fines from uninsured drivers since 2012. That’s according to the latest study by Confused.com (Q3 2022), which identifies the UK police forces that have collected the most from motorists driving without insurance.
West Mercia Police have collected over £12.9 million in uninsured driver fines
West Mercia Police have collected a total of £12,981,571 in uninsured driver fines, ranking eighth. The average fine given by West Merica Police is £483 – 8.2% more than the UK average (£443) and 24% more than neighbouring authority Dyfed-Powys (£364). West Mercia Police have issued 49,036 fines in total since 2012, 38% more than the UK average (30,166).
Since 2012, The Metropolitan Police have collected £75,756,926 in fines from uninsured drivers. This is over double the amount collected by West Yorkshire Police, who placed second (£31,946,116). In total, over 220,000 fines have been given by the Met (220,694) over the past decade. This is over 190,000 more than the average number of fines given across all police authorities analysed (30,166).
West Yorkshire Police have collected the second most uninsured driver fines, with a total of £31,946,116. In the last decade, the force has collected 101,859 fines. This is 74% more than South Yorkshire Police, where just 26,179 fines were seized in the same period. The average fine given in West Yorkshire was found to be £483, 14% more than in Cheshire (£413).
West Midlands Police rank third, with a total of £23,433,073. A total of 60,228 fines have been given within the region, the fifth-highest amount of all areas analysed. West Midlands Police have collected over 3 times the amount in fines than neighbouring authority, Staffordshire (£7,243,147).
Bedfordshire Police charge the most for uninsured drivers
Confused.com have found that uninsured drivers in Bedfordshire are likely to receive the largest fine. Fines distributed by Bedfordshire Police in the last decade were an average of £522 each. This is over two-thirds more than the average fine given by South Wales Police (£314), and 17% more than the average fine across the UK (£443).
Alex Kindred, car insurance expert at Confused.com, comments: “Failing to have the right car insurance policy in place could result in fines, points on your licence or disqualification from driving.
Insurers appreciate that there are some emergency situations where you may need to jump behind the wheel of a car you don’t own. This is why some cover driving other cars within their comprehensive policy. But being over 25 or having a comprehensive policy doesn’t automatically entitle you to this. This must be outlined in your policy, and the car you drive must also be insured by its owner, or yourisk the penalty.
If you’re confused about whether your policy allows you to drive another car, we’ve outlined what policies tend to cover, and how you can add it to your policy in our guide to driving other cars. But it’s important to check your own policy and remember that if you are covered it will only be for damage or injury to a third party.”
