Plate Recognition Cameras Faulty

High tech number plate recognition cameras being used by the police to crack down on drivers without motor insurance cover and crooks are misreading plates, the home office has admitted.

A Home Office minister has revealed that one in five readings is currently coming up wrong, meaning thousands of drivers are being wrongly accused of driving without motor insurance daily.

More seriously, mistakes in the system could be letting crooks and those genuinely without motor insurance off the hook.

Besides inaccuracies in reading the information, bugs in the police's motor insurance database could be creating problems. Drivers are being advised to travel with their motor insurance documents with them. Of course, you should never leave your actual motor insurance documents in the car in case it is stolen. Usually a copy will be sufficient to prove your identity and ownership of the vehicle.

The police have also asked the public to ensure that their plates are clean and that the figures are displayed in regulation typefaces with regular spacing.

An estimated 1.4 million in the UK drive without motor insurance, while accidents caused by drivers without motor insurance cover cost around £500 million a year, adding £30 to the price of the average motor insurance policy.

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