Number of uninsured private vehicles in Ireland exceeded 174,000 in 2021
The MIBI is continuing to press the Government about the importance of taking action to address the growing number of uninsured vehicles on Irish roads.
That was the primary focus when MIBI Chief Executive, David Fitzgerald met with Mr Seán Fleming, Minister of State for Financial Services, Credit Unions, and Insurance.
Following on from recent media coverage on the MIBI’s analysis on the level of uninsured private vehicles, the Minister was keen to discuss and better understand the dimensions of this problem.
As our figures revealed, the number of uninsured private vehicles in Ireland exceeded 174,000 in 2021, a jump of more than 23,000 since 2018.
Growing problems require solutions and thankfully in this case there is already one at hand. The MIBI has been working with Department of Transport, An Garda Síochána and Insurance Ireland to create a process which will allow for the easy and simple identification of uninsured vehicles through the use of automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) technology. The overall project is called ANPR/ MTPL (Automatic Number Plate Recognition/ Motor Third Party Liability).
While the system is already in initial use, for the full scope of the system to be realised the Government will need to enact the Road Traffic and Roads Bill. This will provide a suitable legal basis for the sharing of more information with An Garda Síochána, as well as compelling insurers and fleet owners to supply the necessary information to complete the database of insured vehicles.
The Minister welcomed the prospect of the new MTPL system going live and the MIBI looks forward to further engagement with him and his Department on this and other related matters.