Uninsured driving is encouraged by low fines in Lincolnshire, Lincoln MP Karl McCartney argues.
The average fine for uninsured drivers in Lincolnshire is three times lower than the cost of car insurance, which encourages law breaking, Lincoln MP Karl McCartney has said.
The MP’s figures show the average fine for uninsured driving in Lincolnshire is £213, which is nearly three times lower than the annual cost of comprehensive car insurance at £603.
In addition, McCartney highlighted average fines in the county have fallen from £233 in 2008 to £213 in 2010, as 1,213 people were fined for uninsured driving during 2010 in Lincolnshire.
The average fines show that in effect, someone has to be fined nearly three times in a year in Lincolnshire before it costs more than it would if they had insured their car.
As car insurance is costlier for drivers aged 17 to 25, they would have to be fined up to 12 times for uninsured driving to make up for the cost of their insurance.
McCartney said: “The fines are so ludicrously low compared to the cost of driving with insurance it encourages people to break the law.
“The fact the average fines are increasingly lower in Lincolnshire makes the situation even worse and many people will believe not having insurance is a risk worth taking.
“We need far tougher sentences and this, I know, chimes with the views of local people.
“Those who drive without insurance and then escape, if caught, with just a slap on the wrist is one of those irritating issues that undermine the law abiding’s belief in justice and fair play.”
McCartney also produced a ten-point plan to tackle the problem, which includes an insurance sticker in every windscreen that proves a car is insured, just like the tax disc.
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