Warning issued to all UK drivers as car insurance database goes down

Insurance website askMID appeared to show all cars were uninsured, leaving drivers fearing prosecution, despite being fully insured.

Thousands of vehicles are showing as uninsured on the site askMID on Saturday morning. It is not known what has caused the issue.

The MID (Motor Insurance Database) database is used to compare insurance records with the DVLA. The police use data from the MID for their automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) technology. The equipment alerts officers if it ‘spots’ an uninsured car.

But, anyone wanting to check the insurance status of a vehicle - including their own - might be left feeling very concerned if they venture onto askMID. The website currently claims that cars, which are actually fully insured, are uninsured - warning drivers they could face possible prosecution and a court appearance, according to the Manchester Evening News.

On the page, it reads: "NO. This vehicle is NOT showing as insured on the Motor Insurance Database today. If your vehicle details are NOT on the Motor Insurance Database you are at risk of being fined and facing court prosecution."

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On Twitter, @DriveInsured, the official page of the Motor Insurers' Bureau, tweeted: "We’re aware of an issue with askMID showing vehicles as uninsured. This is affecting the public facing side of the service, but the data used by police at the roadside is unaffected. We're confident no data has been compromised, and working to resolve the situation asap."

A number of drivers have posted on Twitter saying they have been affected. One said: "Apparently the motor insurance database is down and thousands of cars are showing as uninsured. Check yours at askmid both my cars show as uninsured."