ask_sodding_MID

[Kenai]

Its was the insurance company's cockup that caused the problem.

So? It doesn't matter who's **** up caused the error on the database, as long as an error on the database is all it is and the car is insured.

All she had to do was phone them up, let them confirm to the police she was insured and it was in fact just an error that the car didn't appear on the database and she would have been on her way.

 

[jigger]

I was watching Road Wars/Traffic Cops or whatever you call it this week and there was a chap who flagged up as uninsured on the ANPR. The police officer called the insurer who confirmed it was insured (there had been a typo on the certificate that caused the issue in this particular case) and the man was sent on his way. So what you have said doesn't ring true.

The problem is that it doesn't seem Police have to make any enquires (thats how it seems) you have to prove the insurance is valid. If you can't for whatever reason your in trouble.

 

[stockhausen]

The reason there is no punishment on the insurers for not keeping the MID upto date is that it's not a legally binding site. ...

Thank you; I didn't realise that, I was under the impression that it was.

... To summarise: If you have valid car insurance and can prove it with a cover note, you have nothing to worry about.

Excellent, so I'm laughing then

 

[jigger]

So? It doesn't matter who's **** up caused the error on the database, as long as an error on the database is all it is and the car is insured.

All she had to do was phone them up, let them confirm to the police she was insured and it was in fact just an error that the car didn't appear on the database and she would have been on her way.

Well she was insured, but the Police took the car anyway.

 

[Kenai]

Well she was insured, but the Police took the car anyway.

So they didn't allow her any opportunity to prove the car was in fact insured?

They just pulled her, said it was showing uninsured and tough **** they're taking her car no matter what?

Sorry if I don't believe that you're telling the entire truth of this particular story.

 

[jigger]

From what I understand it was a case of a "computer saying no" a user input error in a flawed system that could not be looked into at the time she was stopped.

Believe me or not, the Lady had paid for the insurance and had the paper work at home to prove, but as she was stopped in Merseyside and lived in Lancashire (IIRC) she was not allowed to drive home. From what I was told the Police seemed to think she was lying.

Edit: It was not her fault/end

 

[stockhausen]

... From what I was told the Police seemed to think she was lying.

As the infinitely wise Kenai appears to think with you . . . such is life, no love, no love /shrug/

 

[jon.bda]

Excellent, so I'm laughing then

Got a cover note then...

 

[mattyprice4004]

The details on the MID are:

Vehicle Make/Model: MG ZS+ TD (101)

Thanks for reminding me how crap my car was when it left the factory.

 

[Kenai]

From what I understand it was a case of a "computer saying no" a user input error in a flawed system that could not be looked into at the time she was stopped.

She could have phoned her insurance company.

 

[jigger]

I guess that must have been to much trouble, its easier to just let the car go and take the children on a train

 

[Kenai]

Well apparently so as that's what she seems to have opted for.

 

[cyclops12]

I guess that must have been to much trouble, its easier to just let the car go and take the children on a train

The police would have phoned them, they wouldn't take her car just because it's not on the database.

For what ever reason on that day the insurance company told the police she wasn't insured.

 

[Alibaba99]

The reason there is no punishment on the insurers for not keeping the MID upto date is that it's not a legally binding site. The important part is that YOU (if you are a driver) have upto date and valid insurance.

IF you go onto askMID and do a search and your car does not come up as insured, it is WARNING you that you might end up fined, as it is assuming that some who search on there are not insured. It is THOSE people who are breaking the law.

To summarise: If you have valid car insurance and can prove it with a cover note, you have nothing to worry about.

It is actually a legal requirement that all UK registered vehicles are recorded on MID, as shown here. Insurance companies have a requirement that cars are recorded within a set amount of time after the policy is taken out, target is less than 7 days.

MID is used as proving your have insurance with a cover note or certificate doesn't always work. Take out insurance on direct debit, receive certificate, cancel insurance, wave certificate at policeman when required.

 

[SGWills]

the police have a more accurate system than askmid, secondly if a car does not show on there, they ring the insurance company otherwise they will look like a pair of (o)(o)'s if they took your car off you and then you walk in to the station going "dah da" heres my certificate of insurance.

Askmid is a "aid" to see if the car is insured, so if the OP was about the insurance company updating the national database of insurance, using askmid wont give you the end answer your looking for, as your using a system to check up on a different system, so there will be a delay, or if you were on about the wording of Askmid, then common sense would say if you paid your insurance and you have your insurance documents then your insured


I use MID in work and its a completely (sp?) different amount of information you enter than on the askmid website, so its a "lite" version if you like, as the post above states, MID will have to be up to date within a set time frame however askmid is not what the insurance companies use

 

[dfarrall]

Sorry, but that's not always the way the current system works. I know for a fact a woman had a insured Merc taken from her and impounded as it wrongfully showed no insurance on the Police system.

She was also reported for driving with no insurance and left at the side of the road with two young children to boot.

I would feel like swinging for someone if that to happened to my family. The current system is just all kinds of wrong.

Yes thats true, but coppers DO ring insurance companies. There was either more to it or the copper was a right dick and probably couldve had some sanctioning.

 

[mattyprice4004]

the police have a more accurate system than askmid, secondly if a car does not show on there, they ring the insurance company otherwise they will look like a pair of (o)(o)'s if they took your car off you and then you walk in to the station going "dah da" heres my certificate of insurance.

Askmid is a "aid" to see if the car is insured, so if the OP was about the insurance company updating the national database of insurance, using askmid wont give you the end answer your looking for, as your using a system to check up on a different system, so there will be a delay, or if you were on about the wording of Askmid, then common sense would say if you paid your insurance and you have your insurance documents then your insured


I use MID in work and its a completely (sp?) different amount of information you enter than on the askmid website, so its a "lite" version if you like, as the post above states, MID will have to be up to date within a set time frame however askmid is not what the insurance companies use

I'm sorry but what you are suggesting is wrong.

AskMID takes the information from the MID, so if it's on the MID it will show on AskMID, and if not it won't.

Nothing to do with the fact it's a different system, entirely irrelevant. AskMID simply requests the info from the MID.

 

[Dr Who]

You cannot be. You are not responsible for what is on AskMID and you are not punished if your car isn't on there.

You are, however, responsible for insuring your car, and are punished if you do not.

As the biggest reason for a car not being on AskMID is because it isnt insured, it is accurate to say that if it isn't on there you MIGHT be charged.

Why do you completely agree with false statements? Do you lack the ability to form your own opinion based on fact?

My post count would be so much higher if you didn't say everything that needed saying before I get a chance

I get the feeling your tolerance for idiocy sometimes makes mine look underdeveloped for that I applaud you

 

[DavidMarq]

So how does AskMID work with those drivers that are not legally required to have insurance? i.e. those that are exempt.

 

[SGWills]

I'm sorry but what you are suggesting is wrong.

AskMID takes the information from the MID, so if it's on the MID it will show on AskMID, and if not it won't.

Nothing to do with the fact it's a different system, entirely irrelevant. AskMID simply requests the info from the MID.

im not suggesting anything is wrong and it does matter as your relying on one system to gain more information from another system,not always going to show the same information as there will be a delay some times due to the amount of batches the insurance companies are updating.

When askmid request info theres a chance, however big the chance, that it hasnt been updated because theres a shedload of information being updated, which means for an insurance company checking mid through the proper channels would get an update quicker than a online tool to advise if there is a record showing its been fully updated. plus a quick read through their terms of use states that they are not responicble for the information, so i would say its a third party involved, which like comparison sites are not 100% useful as the information is being relayed which means theres a higher chance of errors, blah blah blah.

the real mid system is a lot better