With the support of MIB, neighbouring forces are working together on a new initiative to tackle uninsured driving along the length of major road networks in the UK. Multi-force operations along the M4 and M62 have seized over 100 uninsured vehicles, with more operations already being planned.

The series of one-day multi-force operations is being led by MIB as part of our £5 million investment to reduce uninsured driving. Our support enables the dedicated resourcing of road policing officers, marked vehicles, ANPR cameras, control room operatives and intel staff.

Two operations successfully completed

The first in the series, Operation M4, took place on 11 April, seeing officers from South Wales, Gwent, Avon and Somerset, Wiltshire, and Thames Valley Police collaborating along a 170 mile stretch of M4 carriageways. Following the success, Operation M62 on 11 July included 90 additional officers from Greater Manchester, Merseyside, West Yorkshire, Cheshire, and Humberside Police.

In total, the two operations led to:

• 399 vehicle stops
• 103 vehicle seizures
• 14 arrests, including for the possession of 2KG cannabis
• 142 individual additional offences identified (36% of all stops), leading to 103 prosecutions, including:
  • 53 no MOT and/or no tax
  • 18 uses of mobile devices whilst driving
  • 18 vehicles with overweight or unsecured loads
  • 13 found driving disqualified or with no/expired driving licence
  • 9 driving under the influence of drink and/or drugs
  • 2 stolen vehicles

Inspector Gavin Dixon, from the Merseyside Police Roads Policing Unit said, “Offenders don’t stop at borders, so neither do we. Working cohesively with colleagues along the length of the M62 means there is no place to hide if you choose to drive without insurance along our network.

“Collaborating with MIB and other forces along the M62 allows us to better tackle the issue of uninsured vehicles. Usually, no insurance is just the tip of the iceberg and will quickly develop into the removal of unroadworthy vehicles, arrests of disqualified drivers and many other offences - making our roads safer for everyone.

Utilising data and MIB support

During the operations, officers utilised several methods to identify uninsured drivers. This included:

• Operation Tutelage markers, where cars passing ANPR cameras on previous occasions have been compared to data held on Navigate, the record of all active motor insurance policies which is managed by MIB. Uninsured vehicles with an Operation Tutelage marker are then flagged to police and dealt with roadside.
• Predictive movements, using ANPR data to establish the whereabouts of uninsured vehicles within 15-minute timeframes.

To support each of the forces, MIB law enforcement liaison officers joined officers at the roadside. This provided a direct link to Navigate policy data and to the MIB Police Helpline, speeding up the process of confirming a vehicles’ insurance status.

Superintendent Colin Hudson, Head of Roads Policing for Thames Valley Police & Hampshire Constabulary, said “Regrettably, some individuals persist in driving without adequate insurance, putting innocent road users at risk. By using the intelligence insights and data from Operation Tutelage and MIB, we've successfully removed numerous hazardous vehicles from the roads during this operation.”

What’s coming next?

We are already in the process of exploring future collaborative operations on other major UK road networks across 2024 and 2025. It’s expected that Operation M8, in collaboration with Police Scotland, will take place in early October.

Martin Saunders, Head of Enforcement at MIB said “We know that uninsured driving is just one of many pressing priorities for our police colleagues. Following the success of Operation M4 and Operation M62, it’s clear that supporting forces in designating time to focus on uninsured driving allows this issue to be tackled head on in a targeted and consistent manner. We know the benefits will be widely felt across all different areas of the community, making the road network itself and surrounding areas safer.

“We’re continuing to shape further multi-force operations across different areas of the UK. This is just one more way, in a wider range of initiatives, in which we’re making sure that those flouting the law have nowhere to hide.”