Welsh police join forces for M4 uninsured drivers crackdown

• ITV Wales' Mike Griffiths reports.

Two Welsh police forces have taken part in a major operation to crack down on uninsured vehicles.

Officers from Gwent Police and South Wales Police joined the Avon & Somerset, Wiltshire and Thames Valley forces in tracking suspected uninsured vehicles across the M4.

Welsh force seizures for uninsured vehicles in 2023 totalled 5,228 - averaging 14 vehicles being seized every day.

"Using the software we have available to us, the units out on patrol are able to identify those vehicles and then intercept them along the M4 corridor, bringing them to the check site", explained Sgt Sean Fletcher, from Gwent Police.

"The power that we have to seize vehicles is not there as a punishment in itself, it's there to prevent that vehicle continuing a journey or another journey.

If the situation allows, and the driver can insure the vehicle then and there, then of course discretion is allowed, but sometimes it's safer for us and the public that we remove the vehicle from the road altogether."

The MIB - Motor Insurers Bureau - has helped coordinate the joint operation.

It told ITV Wales the day resulted in an additional 51 vehicle seizures, plus 5 arrests and 7 prosecutions for other offences.

"Whilst we work with the police throughout the year, supporting forces in designating time to focus on uninsured driving allows this issue to be tackled head on in a targeted way" says Martin Saunders, Head of Enforcement at MIB.

"We know the benefits will be widely felt across all different areas of the force and the community, making the M4 and surrounding areas safer."

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