The number of uninsured drivers on the UK's roads is falling

The new laws also mean that vehicle owners are notified when they have no insurance, and must either take out insurance cover on the vehicle or prove that they are not using it, failure to respond could lead to prosecution.

Graeme Trudgill of the British Insurance Brokers' Association (BIBA) said: "In 2007, approximately 150,000 were seized by the police and in 2006 this number was 78,000. So it's practically doubled in the last year and we're expecting it to be much higher again this year".

BIBA report that the number of uninsured drivers has fallen by more than ten percent in the last two years. It is estimated by the Motor Insurers' Bureau that uninsured drivers cost motorists around an extra £30 a year in insurance premiums or over £500 million in total.

There are around 160 deaths caused each year in road accidents involving uninsured drivers and approximately a further 23,000 injured. Uninsured drivers are more likely to be involved in hit and run incidents than insured drivers, often resulting with the insured driver making a car accident claim on their insurance affecting their no claims discount, even though the uninsured vehicle may have been to blame.