I Should Have Patterson Law On Speed Dial!

Question:

Hi,

I trust you are well.

I think I should have your number on speed dial , the amount of fun i have with cars!!!

I’ve just bought an old x and drove it home to phone up my insurance company. Unfortunately I went passed one of those police vans with a camera sticking out of it and obviously I’m now worried.

My car before was written off after being hit by someone else who admitted it was his fault. I thought my insurance would carry on enabling me to drive this new one, now I’m not so sure after speaking with them earlier today. I have the log book which I presume means the car is still in the sellers name until DVLA get the paperwork and put it in mine?

I wonder whether I can say I was test driving it as I wasn’t sure whether I wanted the car or not. I do and am insured from earlier today.

I’m just hoping that the police will see that this all happened on the same day and I had no intention of driving without insurance as I never have.

The car is MOT’d and taxed.

Your help, as always, would be much appreciated.

Paula Says:

Good to hear from you.

I hope you are spreading the word about Patterson Law amongst your car loving friends !

The police van was most likely there to detect speeders. If they were checking number plates to see whether or not the car was insured then they would have probably stopped you at the time. When they are checking insurance they normally work in teams with a police officer further down the road stopping the cars and identifying the driver.

If they were detecting speed and you were not speeding then nothing will come of it.

If you have bought the car – then the car is yours and it doesn’t matter whose name the log book is in. Being the registered keeper is not proof of ownership. If you’d paid the money then you owned the car. Don’t say it was a test drive.

They will question the previous owner and threaten him with permitting you to drive without insurance – which means he wont collude with you and you will get into even more trouble for attempting to mislead the police – otherwise known as perverting the course of justice.

If they suggest you were speeding and you get a NIP they never usually look into the insurance issue so you should be fine. Come back to me if you hear anything further.