UK Car insurance-1

In 1930, the UK government introduced a law that required every person who used a vehicle on the road to have at least third-party personal injury insurance. Today, UK law is defined by the Road Traffic Act 1988,[14] which was last modified in 1991. The Act requires that motorists either be
insured, have a security, or have made a specified deposit (£500,000 in 1991) with the Accountant General of the Supreme Court, against their liability for injuries to others (including passengers) and for damage to other persons' property, resulting from use of a vehicle on a public road or in other public places.

It is an offense to use a car, or allow others to use it, without the insurance that satisfies the act whilst on the public highway (or public place Section 143(1)(a) RTA 1988 as amended 1991); however, no such legislation applies on private land. Police have the power to seize vehicles that do not have the necessary insurance in place. A driver caught driving without the necessary insurance for that vehicle will be prosecuted by the police and will receive either a fixed penalty or magistrate courts penalty. If convicted the driver will receive an IN10 endorsement on their licence.


Road Traffic Act Only Insurance differs from Third Party Only Insurance (detailed below) and is not often sold. It provides the very minimum cover to satisfy the requirements of the Act. For example Road Traffic Act Only Insurance has a limit of £1,000,000 for damage to third party property – third party only insurance typically has a greater limit for third party property damage. As a result of costly claims, insurance companies can now no longer place a limit on the amount that they are liable for in the event of a claim by 3rd parties against a legitimate policy. This can be explained in part by the Great Heck Rail Crash that cost the insurers over £22 million in compensation for the fatalities and damage to property caused by the actions of the insured driver of a motor vehicle that caused the disaster.


The minimum level of insurance cover commonly available, and which satisfies the requirement of the Act, is called third party only insurance. The level of cover provided by Third party only insurance is basic, but does exceed the requirements of the act. This insurance covers any liability to third parties, but does not cover any other risks.