The seemingly fake speeding convictions are increasing, it is evident that motorists don’t realize where they will end up paying more. For insurers, speed cameras have been a handshake. When a motorist receives penalty points, insurance premiums rise. You will be amazed at the difference that online car insurance quotes can make. A first offense alone can drive a premium up to 10 percent. Add another flash camera and the premium will go up by a third. A second offense can push the premium to outer space.
Many people don’t realize that driving convictions stay on your insurance records longer than they do on your driving licence. Multiple offenses can have a cumulative effect of thousands of pounds and possibly more, on top of the 60-pound fine.
According to the Association of British Insurers, drivers who exceed the speed limit pose a greater risk. Therefore, it is appropriate that convictions be considered when calculating a premium.
The latest speeding convictions suggest that driving standards are rapidly deteriorating and roads need to be filled with high-octane drivers like never before. In two years, the number of offenses has risen by more 700,000. It has risen by over 500 percent in six years.
Compared to this, endorsements for dangerous driving are relatively stable over the same time.
Motoring penalties can be seen as a backdoor tax on cars, but they are completely voluntary because no one is required to exceed the speed limit. According to the Home Office, pilot studies have shown that cameras reduce road deaths and injuries.
However, a deeper look at the statistics can give you a fascinating glimpse into our complex relationship with motoring law.
For every 1,000 cars licensed each year, there are more than 400 motoring offences (including parking). This means it will soon become a minor offense and not be fined.
A hot topic in insurance is whether discriminating between males and females is unfair. However, the majority of insurance fraud, dangerous driving, and theft is committed by men. More than half of all car thieves are younger than 21-years-old, according to statistics.
A saddeningly constant number is that almost 10 people are killed each day in drunk driving accidents.
No one would ever excuse drunken, dangerous or aggressive drivers. Drivers who pay for a minor speeding violation can feel like they are paying a lot, while an alarmingly high number of illegal drivers go untaxed and don’t have to pay any insurance.
According to the RAC Foundation, there are more cars than 2 million without a registered keeper. This indicates the extent of unregulated and unlicensed motoring.
While legal drivers are subject to a more stringent and costly system of fines and congestion charges, parking costs and toll roads, taxes and insurance, there seems to be another world where they can drive around and not pay. According to Jobs & Money, this confirms alarming claims made by the Motor Insurers Bureau last autumn that up to a third (or more) of inner-city drivers are not insured.
The average insurance fine for fraud is just PS152, which is significantly less than the cost insurance. According to the RAC Foundation, relying on speed cameras’ automated functions will not stop such high levels in criminality. Instead, revenue should be used for policing and less for speed cameras.
There are signs, however, that speeding fines are causing a new type of crime. This week, a report warned that plates are being stolen more often than ever before. These plates can then be used to deceive speed cameras and congestion camera operators.
Insurers also hear that family drivers are illegally “sharing” penalties points by claiming another driver was driving.
Unnamed driver, travelling at speeds of over 150 miles an hour using a mobile phone while driving in Scotland, was caught by police this week. That one should be explained to the insurance companies.
