Asked by: Alex Ballinger (Labour - Halesowen)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will bring forward legislative proposals to ban car insurance companies from using age to determine insurance premiums for older drivers.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government takes uninsured driving seriously. This is achieved through Continuous Insurance Enforcement (CIE), a scheme where the Motor Insurers’ Bureau and Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency collaborate to identify uninsured drivers and police enforcement on the road.
All drivers must be insured to drive the vehicle they are using and for the purpose it is used for. As with all drivers, they are subject to roadside enforcement by the police.
Motor insurers are responsible for setting the terms and conditions of the policies that they offer, and it is for them to decide the level of risk that they take in issuing any policy to a given applicant. They use a range of criteria to assess the potential risk a driver poses, including the age of the applicant, the type of vehicle being insured, the postal area where the applicant lives and the driving experience and record of the applicant. The setting of premiums is a commercial decision for individual insurers based on their underwriting experience and the Government does not intervene or seek to control the market.
The Equality Act 2010 provides general protection against age discrimination for people of all ages. However, the Act also includes an exemption for those conducting an assessment of risk for the purposes of providing a financial service to another person. This means that motor insurance companies are still able to take age into account when considering the premium to be paid or indeed whether to insure people of any particular age group.
Asked by: Alex Ballinger (Labour - Halesowen)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department is taking steps to help tackle the use of (a) fraudulent and (b) substitute insurance by fast food delivery drivers.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government takes uninsured driving seriously. This is achieved through Continuous Insurance Enforcement (CIE), a scheme where the Motor Insurers’ Bureau and Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency collaborate to identify uninsured drivers and police enforcement on the road.
All drivers must be insured to drive the vehicle they are using and for the purpose it is used for. As with all drivers, they are subject to roadside enforcement by the police.
Motor insurers are responsible for setting the terms and conditions of the policies that they offer, and it is for them to decide the level of risk that they take in issuing any policy to a given applicant. They use a range of criteria to assess the potential risk a driver poses, including the age of the applicant, the type of vehicle being insured, the postal area where the applicant lives and the driving experience and record of the applicant. The setting of premiums is a commercial decision for individual insurers based on their underwriting experience and the Government does not intervene or seek to control the market.
The Equality Act 2010 provides general protection against age discrimination for people of all ages. However, the Act also includes an exemption for those conducting an assessment of risk for the purposes of providing a financial service to another person. This means that motor insurance companies are still able to take age into account when considering the premium to be paid or indeed whether to insure people of any particular age group.
Asked by: Alex Ballinger (Labour - Halesowen)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will take legislative steps to ensure that car insurance renewal quotes are equitable for existing and new customers.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government takes uninsured driving seriously. This is achieved through Continuous Insurance Enforcement (CIE), a scheme where the Motor Insurers’ Bureau and Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency collaborate to identify uninsured drivers and police enforcement on the road.
All drivers must be insured to drive the vehicle they are using and for the purpose it is used for. As with all drivers, they are subject to roadside enforcement by the police.
Motor insurers are responsible for setting the terms and conditions of the policies that they offer, and it is for them to decide the level of risk that they take in issuing any policy to a given applicant. They use a range of criteria to assess the potential risk a driver poses, including the age of the applicant, the type of vehicle being insured, the postal area where the applicant lives and the driving experience and record of the applicant. The setting of premiums is a commercial decision for individual insurers based on their underwriting experience and the Government does not intervene or seek to control the market.
The Equality Act 2010 provides general protection against age discrimination for people of all ages. However, the Act also includes an exemption for those conducting an assessment of risk for the purposes of providing a financial service to another person. This means that motor insurance companies are still able to take age into account when considering the premium to be paid or indeed whether to insure people of any particular age group.
Asked by: Alex Ballinger (Labour - Halesowen)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to tackle issues related to falsified (a) driving licences and (b) other transport-related documents created by AI.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) has processes in place to identify fake and forged documents including genuine documents that may have been altered. These measures help to make original documents difficult to counterfeit and forgeries easier to identify. DVLA documents, including the driving licence, contain a number of security features to prevent misuse. These features are regularly reviewed and periodically updated to help keep documents secure and to help tackle fraud.
The DVLA also provides the police with information about these security features to help them to identify genuine documents.
Asked by: Alex Ballinger (Labour - Halesowen)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of the Motorcycle Industry Association’s publication entitled A Licence to Net Zero, published in October 2023.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
My Department will be meeting the Motorcycle Industry Association at the Motorcycle Strategic Focus Group later this month to discuss the A Licence to Net Zero plan, alongside other ideas put forward by the motorcycle industry.
Asked by: Alex Ballinger (Labour - Halesowen)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions she has had with the Motorcycle Industry Association on user licensing for powered light vehicles.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
My Department will be meeting the Motorcycle Industry Association at the Motorcycle Strategic Focus Group later this month to discuss the A Licence to Net Zero plan, alongside other ideas put forward by the motorcycle industry.
Asked by: Alex Ballinger (Labour - Halesowen)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the total number of passes for the AM moped licence was in 2024; and what assessment she has made of the potential merits of conducting a review of user licensing for powered light vehicles.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government is considering plans to review existing requirements for motorcycle training, testing and licensing, taking account of long-standing Department for Transport and Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency plans and recent sector proposals.
Those wishing to ride a moped will first need to pass a theory test. After which they will need to pass an off-road riding test (known as the ‘module 1 test’) and an on-road riding test (known as the ‘module 2 test’).
The table below show the number of Module 1 and Module 2 AM category practical riding tests conducted by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency and the number of tests passed between 1 January and 31 December 2024.
Test type | Tests conducted | Tests passed |
AM Module 1 | 18 | 13 |
AM Module 2 | 17 | 8 |
Asked by: Alex Ballinger (Labour - Halesowen)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she plans to consult on introducing licence upgrade courses for powered light vehicles.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government is considering plans to review existing requirements for motorcycle training, testing and licensing, taking account of long-standing Department for Transport and Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency plans and recent sector proposals.
Those wishing to ride a moped will first need to pass a theory test. After which they will need to pass an off-road riding test (known as the ‘module 1 test’) and an on-road riding test (known as the ‘module 2 test’).
The table below show the number of Module 1 and Module 2 AM category practical riding tests conducted by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency and the number of tests passed between 1 January and 31 December 2024.
Test type | Tests conducted | Tests passed |
AM Module 1 | 18 | 13 |
AM Module 2 | 17 | 8 |
Asked by: Alex Ballinger (Labour - Halesowen)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to enforce stricter penalties for (a) unsafe driving and (b) speeding.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Since the general election, the Department has begun work on a new Road Safety Strategy, the first in over a decade. The Department will share more details in due course.
Asked by: Alex Ballinger (Labour - Halesowen)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to reduce the number of road fatalities.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Since the general election, the Department has begun work on a new Road Safety Strategy, the first in over a decade. The Department will share more details in due course.