New regulations mean no time to renew car insurance, says Norwich Union

Norwich Union has said that changes to car insurance regulations will mean that from January motorists will lose their 14 day 'intention to renew' per

11:15 14 December 2004

Norwich Union has said that changes to car insurance regulations will mean that from January motorists will lose their 14 day 'intention to renew' period on car insurance policies.

Currently motorists have two weeks' grace between their current car insurance policy running out and when they must have a new one, but in order to come in line with new European regulations this will have to change.

The regulations are an attempt to crack down on uninsured drivers.

Police estimates suggest that between one and five million UK drivers do not have insurance. It is also estimated that insurance premiums are inflated by an average of 30 to cover claims that are made against drivers without insurance.

Police are now planning to clamp down on uninsured drivers, through measures such as linking insurance firms' computer records with those at the Driver & Vehicle Licensing Association (DVLA).

This will allow police to discover if a car is insured simply by chcking its number plate.

David Jamieson, the Road Safety Minister, has said he will bring in powers allowing police to seize uninsured vehicles to take them off the roads.

"Getting these vehicles off the road will improve road safety for everyone and reduce the nuisance people experience when they try to make a claim off someone who turns out to be uninsured."

By January, 95 per cent of motor insurance records must be submitted to the Motor Insurers' Database (MID) within 14 days of any change to the motor policy, whether it be renewal, new business or mid-term change.

And a five-day auto-lapse will also be introduced by Norwich Union, whereby car insurance policies will be lapsed automatically if Norwich Union is not made aware of their renewal within five of the renewal date passing.

Norwich Union, the UK's largest insurer, is currently responsible for insuring one in seven of the UK's motor vehicles.