Question to the Home Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their estimate of the number of uninsured motor vehicles on UK roads; what they are doing to support police in removing uninsured vehicles from the roads; and what other measures they have considered to reduce this crime, including the use of automatic number plate recognition at petrol stations.

There are an estimated one million uninsured motor vehicles on UK roads each day.

Operation Tutelage is a national policing initiative where police forces issue advisory letters to drivers who appear to have no motor insurance. The letter encourages the registered keeper to identify if there is a problem with the insurance for the vehicle, and to put things right. The initiative which is led by the NPCC and supported by the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB), was introduced in January 2020 to help reduce uninsured driving levels across the UK.

The Government has established a Roads Policing Review (RPR), consisting of the Department for Transport, Home Office and the National Police Chiefs’ Council, to understand what can be done better to tackle road crime and improve roads safety. The review brings together partners from several agencies including the DVLA, DVSA, and Highways England and is the most comprehensive examination of roads policing ever conducted.

The Government will continue to support the police to ensure that they have the tools needed to enforce road traffic legislation. This includes the continued investment in ANPR technology to tackle crime.