Official figures released by the Police Service of Northern Ireland show that insurance offences is the largest group in 2023 with 7,298 detections, followed by speeding with 5,551 detections.
There were a further 4,666 detections related to careless driving offences, 90 more offences than in 2022.
In 2023, there were 39,789 detections for motoring offences in Northern Ireland, a decrease of 3,347 offences on the 43,136 detections recorded in 2022.
Of the 39,789 detections in 2023, over three fifths resulted in a referral for prosecution and a further one fifth endorsable fixed penalty notice.
Responding to the new data, Greg Wilson, Founder and CEO of Northern Ireland’s largest car insurance comparison site, Compare NI, comments: “It’s quite shocking to see lack of insurance as the number one motoring offence – insurance is a legal requirement that protects drivers, it also safeguards their finances, at a time when the cost of living has almost never been so high. Car insurance doesn’t have to be an expensive outgoing anymore, there are tips people can use to get more for their money and our comparison website keeps insurance providers competitive.
“Obviously safety is the first priority, but from a financial point of view being convicted of a motoring offence can also increase the cost of your car insurance quite significantly, with six penalty points resulting in insurance premiums spiking by 25% on average.”
Over half of those detected for mobile phone offences were aged between 30-49.
Greg continues: “The use of mobiles while driving is an addictive and dangerous distraction that has been involved in 1.6 million car accidents worldwide. An important piece of legislation that went through last week banning people from touching their phones while driving, highlights the long awaited zero tolerance approach to using mobiles while driving. We’ll likely see a surge of penalty points over the next couple of months as the new law is enforced, so we’d encourage all motorists to avoid temptation and put their phone out of reach while driving.”
Driving without the appropriate insurance is illegal and if caught, the consequences can be very serious with 6 penalty points and a fine as a minimum. Motorists could face an unlimited fine, a ban from driving and even seizure of the vehicle in question.
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