The UK Road Traffic Act: Car Insurance

The RTA covers not just car insurance but also many other areas of road law in the UK. We do not intend to cover the entirety of the act, but just the sections we believe will be of use to you as a driver in the UK. If you would like to know more about the RTA please visit here.

Principal Road Safety Provisions

This section covers driving offences and promotion of road safety. It is an offence to drive or be in charge of a car when under the influence of drink or drugs.

Certain offences were reviewed in 1991. Death by reckless driving no longer exists in UK law and has been replaced by:

a) Causing death by dangerous driving
b) Causing death by driving when under the influence of drink or drugs.

Construction and Use of vehicles and Equipment

This section was created to ensure that vehicles are regularly tested to ensure their road worthiness.

Licensing Of Drivers

This section of the RTA ensures that a driver is both physically capable of driving a motor vehicle and has the requisite skills to do so. The following age restrictions apply:
Mopeds - Age 16
Motorcycles, cars, etc - Age 17
Commercial Vehicles over 7.5 tons - 21

Licensing of Large Goods Vehicles and Passenger Carrying Vehicles

This section deals with the necessary steps that an individual must go through to drive large goods vehicles and passenger carrying vehicles (taxis etc)

Driving Instruction

For payment, an individual must be an approved instructor with all the relevant car insurance to cover them and their students in the event of an incident.

Third Party Liabilities

As this directly relates to our customers we would like to take some time to cover this in a little more detail.

This section of the RTA deals with compulsory car insurance that each driver must have to cover 3rd parties in the event that a driver causes damage or injury.

No person should "use" a car on UK roads without adequate 3rd party car insurance, it should also be noted that the owner of a vehicle should not allow others that they know to be uninsured to drive their vehicle(s) on the road.

Please note that the word "use" is not restricted to just driving it. The very presence on the road is termed as use as is towing a vehicle. Car insurance must be held by an authorized insurer who is defined in the Motor Insurance Companies Act, they must also be members of the Motor Insurance Bureau.

Each car insurance policy must cover the insured against death, injury or damage to a third parties property. It must also cover the insured driver(s) to drive within the EU.

Car Insurance Certificates

Whilst strictly speaking, the insured needs a certificate of car insurance before they can drive, the car insurance broker can hold the cover note on their clients behalf. There are strong laws about cover notes and in particular the dates, it is illegal to back date cover.

Girl Motor provides low cost womens car insurance so there's really no excuse to be caught driving without insurance. We offer the lowest premiums in the industry. If you can find low cost womens car insurance for less with someone else, we'll refund the difference.