Last month the MIB announced it was clamping down on vehicle registration in a bid to slash the number of uninsured vehicles on UK roads.
Businesses were requested to register their vehicle stock with the Motor Insurance Database within the specified deadline or face fines of up to £5,000 and referral to the Crown Prosecution Service.
But despite complying with the MIB directive some businesses have received the warning letter.
The MIB said there had been a “few instances” where dealers had received the letter despite them keeping their records up to date and added it was now addressing the problem.
“These problems are being rectified by their [dealers'] insurers and the Motor Insurers' Bureau will take no further action,” said Neil Drane, head of the Motor Insurers' Information Centre at the MIB
“Before proceeding with prosecutions, we will validate each and every case with the insurer concerned. No motor traders will be prosecuted if they have supplied all the required information.”
It is unclear how many dealers have been caught out by the flawed checking procedures.
One dealer that has been affected is Peter Cabble, owner of Foundary Garage in Street, Somerset. He said he had received a letter from the MID threatening legal action if he did not register his vehicles immediately, despite the fact he had done so months earlier.
Cabble holds policies with two insurance companies and had registered all his vehicles through his Norwich Union policy after being advised by the MID that it was acceptable to do so.
He then received a letter stating his case would be referred to the CPS if he did not comply with
the registering process within
two weeks.
“I've been in this industry for
44 years and I'm as straight as a gun barrel,” Cabble said.
“I'd been told it doesn't matter how you register vehicles as long as they're on the database.”
Cabble claimed that when he contacted the MID the staff there said they were unaware that a business could register all its vehicles through one insurance policy and advised him to
re-register.
He is now calling on the MID to implement stricter checking procedures.