The number of claims relating to accidents caused by uninsured or untraced vehicles grew by 11% in 2023, according to new figures published by the Motor Insurers’ Bureau of Ireland (MIBI). Last year the MIBI received a total of 1,927 claims. This represented 187 additional claims from the 1,740 they received in 2022.

Reacting to the growth in claims the MIBI said it, “Reaffirms the importance of the new law enforcement system to clamp down on uninsured driving.” Since signing a data sharing agreement last November, the MIBI is now providing the insurance details for 3 million vehicles using Irish roads on a daily basis to An Garda Síochána. This means that the Gardaí can now check the insurance status of any vehicle simply by scanning its registration plate.

As the MIBI is a not for profit organisation that was established to compensate victims of road traffic accidents caused by uninsured and unidentified vehicles, effectively the expense of meeting these claims is borne by law abiding motorists. The average motorist will have contributed €30 – €35 at their most recent insurance renewal to cover the claims paid out by the MIBI in the last year.

Looking at the breakdown of the claims relating to uninsured driving by county, the largest number came in Dublin (822), followed by Cork (141), Limerick (112), Kildare (102) and Galway (91). The number of claims relating to uninsured drivers grew in 14 of the 26 counties across the Republic, with the largest percentage increases occurring in Mayo (up 80%), Meath (up 55%) and Kildare (up 42%). Nine counties recorded a drop in the number of claims, with the largest percentage decreases coming in Leitrim (down 55%), Offaly (down 29%) and Sligo (down 21%). Three counties also recorded the exact same number of claims as 2022.

Speaking about the level of claims received in 2023, David Fitzgerald, CEO of the MIBI said, “This jump of almost 200 claims due to accidents caused by uninsured vehicles should be a cause of concern for every law abiding motorist in the country. It is illegal to drive without valid motor insurance, yet as these figures show there are still a significant number of people who are willingly flouting the law.”

David added, “Every one of the uninsured motorists behind these claims is effectively putting their hands in the pockets of law abiding motorists and taking their money. As they broke the law and drove without insurance cover, it becomes the responsibility of the MIBI to handle the compensation associated with these claims. We are a not for profit organisation so our funding comes indirectly from drivers who pay their motor insurance. Essentially these uninsured drivers took millions of euro from the rest of us last year and added €30 to €35 to the average motor insurance policy.”

“With the level of claims growing, it reaffirms the importance of the new law enforcement system to clamp down on uninsured driving. We are now providing the Gardaí with updated insurance information for 3 million vehicles on Irish roads on a daily basis. So if they scan your registration number they’ll know in seconds if there is valid insurance in place or not. We’re on record saying our expectation is that this will be a gamechanger for law enforcement in dealing with the scourge of uninsured driving. We hope that as this new weapon begins to bite, it won’t be long before the number of uninsured claims we receive also begins to fall.”