Thought My Friend Had Vehicle Insurance

Question:

My friend was driving the car I rented, and was caught speeding at 37mph on a 30mph road. I was feeling unwell at the end of the day so I got him to just bring all of us home.

My friend has been an international student for over a year, and hence his licence is invalid (which we didn’t know). He also does not have insurance (which we didn’t know about). We are both international students.

What will happen to us, and will this affect our applications for work visa?

Paula Says:

I am not an expert in work visa’s so I can only advise in relation to the road traffic offences.

Your friend is at risk of 6-8 points for driving without insurance and without the correct licence.

You are at risk of 6-8 points for permitting him to drive without insurance. You will both get fines on top of the points.

Why did you both think he was insured? You may be able to avoid the points if you made it a pre-condition of use that he had to be insured and if he had a good reason for thinking he was covered.

Tell me more. Would you like me to represent you both when the matter gets to court?