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Tens of thousands of vehicles details insured under Company Car / Fleet policies are reportedly missing from the Motor Insurance Database (MID).Consequently, drivers of these vehicles have a much higher chance of being stopped by the police under suspicion of driving without insurance.

The Motor Insurers’ Bureau, which manages the database, said thousands of fleet policies have not been updated.

“At the end of November, there were more than 26,000 unpopulated policies on the MID, that is those with no vehicle details attached,” explained a bureau spokesman.

This is despite Fleet / Transport Managers and their insurers being legally obliged to provide details of all vehicles on their policies to ensure that they’re added to the database.

The police have direct access to the database and use it to identify uninsured vehicles.

Over the festive season, there will be additional police road checks as well as the usual automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras, which alert officers if a passing vehicle is not registered on the database.

“If your vehicles are insured but not on the MID, then your drivers are at risk,” said Neil Drane, head of MID operations at the Motor Insurers’ Bureau.

“And even if your no drink and drive policy has been a complete success, your drivers may still find themselves failing to make that crucial Christmas delivery while your vehicle sits in a police pound.”

So far this year, the police have carried out more than 30 million checks of the database and have impounded a staggering 120,000 vehicles at the roadside.

While the MIB says it is unlikely that fleet drivers will have their vehicle seized if their details are not on the insurance database, they are still running that risk.

“Like drink-driving, uninsured driving is unacceptable under any circumstances, but the increased police presence on our roads over the Christmas period is a very timely reminder to fleet managers to make sure every single one of their vehicles is on the MID today,” said Mr Drane

Transport secretary Jim Fitzpatrick has refused to rule out a complete ban on mobile phone use in road vehicles. Mr Fitzpatrick said there were no firm plans in place for a total ban at the moment, but added: “The evidence appears to be growing that talking on a phone while driving is a serious distraction.

“As evidence and new statistics start emerging, there may be a much stronger case.”

Driving while talking on a handheld mobile phone was banned in 2003, and earlier this year the penalty was raised from £30 to £60 and three penalty points.

Research carried out by the Transport Research Laboratory has demonstrated that talking on a mobile phone while driving – even when using a hands-free kit – is more dangerous than drink-driving.

Mr Fitzpatrick said more people now understand how dangerous this practice can be.

“Drink-driving was once socially acceptable but now isn’t because we were able to demonstrate how dangerous it is,” he told Fleet News at the Best of the Best conference organised by road safety charity Brake.

“People are now getting the message and now know that talking on a mobile phone is dangerous.

“In terms of road safety and our commitment to help cut the number of deaths and serious injuries, we would never exclude anything ultimately from being examined.

“The new Highway Code discourages people from using hands-free kits. People shouldn’t be distracted, and talking on a phone can be distracting.”

The Government is currently encouraging van drivers not to use hands-free phones while on the road as part of its Think! campaign, which focuses on safety while driving for work.

The next phase of the campaign, which launched in February this year, will target fleet drivers.

“If everyone plays their part, we can go a long way toward cutting down the numbers of people of people killed and seriously injured on our roads,” said Mr Fitzpatrick.