Motorists will have to provide their driver number to their insurer when taking out a policy from next year.
The new measure, which comes into effect on March 31st, will also require the driver numbers of named drivers to be provided.
The development follows the signing of a commencement order by the Minister for Transport, Eamon Ryan, for legislation giving effect to the requirement.
All insurers and intermediaries acting on their behalf will also have to ensure driver number data is collected by them and validated against the Department of Transport’s National Vehicle and Driver File.
This will have to be done before a motor insurance policy is issued and the data has to be moved to the Irish Motor Insurance Database (IMID).
Gardaí have access to the IMID using mobile devices, which can be used to check drivers insurance status at the side of the road.
From March, they will also be able to check the driver numbers in the IMID.
“For Gardaí, having access to the Irish Motor Insurance Database on their Garda Mobility Devices puts them in a stronger position to detect those breaking the law by driving without insurance,” said An Garda Síochána Assistant Commissioner – Roads Policing and Community Engagement, Paula Hilman.
“The additional feature of having a person’s Driver Number data available to Gardaí through the Irish Motor Insurance database will further strengthen our ability to keep road users safe.”
“This new development underscores the considerable progress that is being achieved when we improve the technology available to members of An Garda Síochána, when we work in partnership with stakeholders and share data.”
The move has been backed by industry group, Insurance Ireland.
“The inclusion of Driver Numbers in the process is a further enabler of the system following the successful roll-out of the first two phases of the project,” said Moyagh Murdock, CEO of Insurance Ireland.
“With an 11% growth in claims in 2023 caused by uninsured vehicles reported by the Motor Insurers’ Bureau of Ireland, increased detection of uninsured vehicles is more important than ever.”
“Every uninsured driving claim is adding to the premium of law-abiding drivers.”
Article Source – Motorists must provide driver number to insurer under new measure – RTE
