Granddaughter Used Our Car

Question:

My granddaughter was stopped at a random check driving a car on temporary loan registered to me, insured by me on a comprehensive policy and with her mother as named driver.

We believed that reduced cover would apply to my granddaughter driving on rare occasions as it would have in the past and did not realise that the insurance industry’s terms have changed but she is charged with not being insured.

I immediately corrected the situation by adding her name to my policy and paying the adjusted premium to provide cover from the day following the offence.

The mistake was a genuine one for which I have a responsibility, as my daughter and I were acting upon historical experience rather than properly investigating the terms of my policy, the details of which my granddaughter was unaware. I have written a statement to this effect and apologizing to the court.

In order for the statement to be taken into consideration, does she plead guilty or not guilty?

Paula Says:

Is your granddaughter a new driver in the first two years after passing her test? She will get 6-8 points for this offence.

If she is a new driver she will have her licence revoked unless she defends the matter or successfully argues special reasons to avoid the points.

She cannot defend the matter if she cannot show a certificate covering her at the time of the alleged offence.

Her only other hope is to attend court and make a special reasons argument. The court will not deal with a no insurance matter in her absence in any event because they always consider imposing a discretionary ban.

If she makes a special reasons argument this will have to be on the basis that she was driving under the genuine and reasonable misapprehension that she was covered by insurance. Did you tell her that she would be?

Making a special reasons argument is not easy and they do not succeed very often. You have to give evidence on oath and you are cross examined by the court and the cps. You would need to attend as well if you told her she would be covered.

Would you like my help with this matter? I succeed with these arguments almost 80% of the time and many of my clients are new drivers at risk of revocation.

If there was no criminality on her part I may be able to persuade the CPS to drop the case – but that would be a long shot.

Come back to me if I can help further. I charge private fixed fees for my services.