ANPR insurance issue

[Richard_C]

Sounds a horrid experience and a real flaw in the system.

Top up policies have been around for a long time, when my daughter was learning 12 years ago we took one out for a couple of months until we bought a cheaper to insure car. Your main insurance covers things like fire and theft and the normal insured drivers. The top up covers just the added in one for either comprehensive or 3rd party depending on what you buy, just while they are at the wheel.

You often see adverts for day insure, suppose you are going on a long trip with a friend who is not named on your policy you can buy an add on for a few hours up to 7 days I think, and if your main insurer charges a hefty admin fee for making changes the add on day insure might be cheaper plus its instant. Again, it's a top up just while that driver is at the wheel.

Another sort is for delivery drivers. Amazon have amazon flex, drivers can opt just to do a few hours a month so need carriage of goods extension. That is uneconomic for most unless they are doing it regularly so there is a top up you can buy, say 20 hours worth, and it ticks down while you are delivering for amazon. Likely herpes and their ilk do similar.

If the police can't or won't find a way to deal with that sort of thing, they will get swamped with seized vehicles and complaints.

The cynic in me wonders if some officers get a kickback ££ or two for every bit of business they push towards the sometimes private company outsourced tow trucks and storage yards. No way of knowing, we just have to trust the integrity of the officer just like we trust the integrity of others in public life.

 

[Fergie 307]

Formal letters of complaint to the chief constable of that force, to your police and crime commissioner and to your MP. They are using a defective system and falsely accusing you on that basis. It is not your responsibility to make their system work.
Don't get mad at the copper on the spot. He / she no doubt believes that they have reasonable grounds for doing what they did, but raising awareness and causing embarrassment to the seniors is the way to make them change the policy.

ANPR has really nothing to do with it. It is linked to the database maintained by the insurance companies. It is their responsibility to make sure the details are up to date, not the police. They can only go by what the database tells them, or a phone call to the company, assuming of course that it is during office hours. Very unlikely that details held in yoir account on their website will be different to what they have updated on the central database. In my sons case the company had simply messed up and so it wasnt recorded anywhere that it was actually insured. From the officers point of view why should he or she take your word for it that it is insured, when all the information available to them says otherwise? After all, if you were driving illegally then you would say that wouldn't you.

 

[Fergie 307]

Like 1Stephen, I always print a copy of my insurance certificate to keep in the car.

In the days before the police had access to computerised records from the insurance companies, it was a common dodge to take out a policy, wait till you had the documents, then cancel the policy. You then had a document saying the vehicle was insured when it actually wasnt, and no way for anyone to know unless they actually called the company.

 

[artie]

In the days before the police had access to computerised records from the insurance companies, it was a common dodge to take out a policy, wait till you had the documents, then cancel the policy. You then had a document saying the vehicle was insured when it actually wasnt, and no way for anyone to know unless they actually called the company.

I recall having to return the cert of insurance before they would refund.

 

[artie]

e “the offence has already taken place, this is a legal seizure “

What offence.?

Didn't you say there was no offence.

 

[stuckinthemud]

That is the phrase he used when he refused to allow me time to bring down my daughter, or my documents. It didn’t bother him he was leaving my son outside his friend’s house at 2:00 and 10 miles from home but his time was too valuable to wait 20 minutes for me to get there. Bet it took a lot more time to sort the tow and fill in the paperwork

 

[johna.clements]

The cynic in me wonders if some officers get a kickback ££ or two for every bit of business they push towards the sometimes private company outsourced tow trucks and storage yards. No way of knowing, we just have to trust the integrity of the officer just like we trust the integrity of others in public life.

I would be surprised if some do not get a kickback. If they are being convicted of rape and murder it would be a bit optimistic they are not involved in minor crimes. There was a police officer on question time recently who was complaining about low pay.

The police do tend to stick together and will give each other the benefit of the doubt.

 

[Fergie 307]

This certainly went on in the 70's. There was a bit of a scandal in Hertfordshire I think where the same company was getting most of the business, and turned out the traffic officers were callimg them and getting a bung. I think it was rumbled when a rival company complained. When I was last involved in recovery work 20 odd years ago it was all done on a rota by the police control room, only way you got to jump the rota was if the job required specialist kit that only some companies had.

 

[Fergie 307]

I recall having to return the cert of insurance before they would refund.

Of course ... after you copied it

 

[woodieallen]

Formal complaint to the Police ? Absolutely pointless. We made a complaint June 30. Slow, doesn't enter it.

Last communication beginning of November ...

Fortunately I have everything I need including the telephone call to the Sgt whereby she rationalises the visit, I am trying to source her paperwork from another source as she will be the only one who has access to it.

I have sought advice for my professional standards department and they are happy for me to proceed with my final report based on the telephone call and hopefully paperwork she completed. Hopefully I should get you my final report soon.

Ooh...has Hell frozen over ? I have zero faith in the police and certainly will never bother to ring 101 again and TBH not that sure about bothering to ring 999.

 

[stuckinthemud]

Talking to my insurers, they are mystified as everything their end is correct. All the officers had to do was a MID (motor insurance database) check to see whetherANPR was correct. They are also confused as the police should have cancelled the tow fee once proof of insurance was provided. Now I have to go through a police complaint process to recover the fee!

 

[woodieallen]

Talking to my insurers, they are mystified as everything their end is correct. All the officers had to do was a MID (motor insurance database) check to see whetherANPR was correct. They are also confused as the police should have cancelled the tow fee once proof of insurance was provided. Now I have to go through a police complaint process to recover the fee!

That will probably take at least six months.

 

[--Tom--]

Talking to my insurers, they are mystified as everything their end is correct. All the officers had to do was a MID (motor insurance database) check to see whetherANPR was correct. They are also confused as the police should have cancelled the tow fee once proof of insurance was provided. Now I have to go through a police complaint process to recover the fee!

A few copies of the version of events to consumer watchdog type people and local news should kick the ball along. Police have a tough job to do, but should be held to account when they make a mistake and don’t rectify with the same haste as when they made it.