Fines for driving without insurance are to rise from £200 to £300 .
Earlier this month, it was announced that the fixed penalty fine for driving without insurance would rise by 50 per cent in July - from £200 to £300.
This increase comes at the same time as new fines for middle-lane hogging and tailgating are introduced.
But a leading motorists' group says that the £100 rise in the fine for driving without cover will have no impact on repeat offenders. It is believed many drivers make a financial decision to drive without car insurance rather than pay annual premiums that dwarf any fines imposed by police or the courts. Currently maximum fine for no car insurance is up to £5,000, but this has never been imposed. Fines are means-tested, which means that the average fine is £299 - just under the new £300 fixed penalty. Also in 2012 more than half of court fines imposed for driving without insurance were £200 or less.
£300 fine versus £2,850 car insurance cost
By way of comparison, men aged between 17 and 20 face average annual premiums of around £2,850.
This is according to the latest study, which looked at more than four million quotes to see what prices drivers were getting for cover between January and March 2013.
Those aged 21 to 25 paid an average of £1,500 a year for cover.
Many driving uninsured cars are young men who may already have several motoring offences to their name. So potential fines have little deterrent value and you can easily pick another cheap banger for cash, no questions asked, and continue offending.
Hotspot for uninsured drivers
David Ward, MP for Bradford East, said that simply increasing fines was unlikely to be effective.
He said: "When the court sets these charges, they have to bear in mind whether a person can afford it. "The fine could be £3 million rather than £300: but if they can't pay it, they can't pay it."
Around 160 people a year are killed by uninsured drivers in England and Wales, with thousands more injured, according to road safety organisation Brake.
The AA wants the government to take a much tougher line with uninsured drivers, particularly those who offend time and again.
Is prison the way to tackle uninsured drivers?
The AA says that in extreme cases the courts should impose electronic tags or prison sentences.
It also wants minister to increase the number of police patrols equipped with automatic number plate-recognition technology, which is used to identify vehicles without insurance, an MoT, or tax.
Large fines for those who can't pay them are not effective, But if uninsured drivers know they'll quickly be caught then that will act as a big disincentive. We need a tough, no-compromise approach to uninsured drivers which should include community service.
However, Bradford East MP David Ward is less convinced that prison is the answer.
He said: "The problem with custodial sentences is that our prisons are full enough as they are.
But there is a strong case for saying that the fines from uninsured drivers should be given to the police so they can upgrade their vehicles with this number plate-recognition technology.
'Forgetful' drivers could be caught out
There are concerns that a tougher approach could hit motorists who are driving uninsured as a result of their own error.
A senior motoring lawyer said: "I come across many drivers who inadvertently commit the offence of driving without insurance through sheer forgetfulness or disorganisation rather than any intent to break the law. "The offence is one of strict liability – either you are insured or you are not.
"Therefore it does not distinguish between someone who changed bank accounts and forgot to move their insurance direct debit and the serial offender."
It would be difficult for the courts to bring intention into the equation.
This would require prosecutors to establish that a defendant had deliberately chosen to drive without cover.
She also said: "As long as there is no distinction between offenders of this kind, I think the increase in the fixed penalty fine is as far as it should go."
