Anyone lucky enough to own a fleet of bikes will sometimes throw their leg over a machine which does not have a valid MOT/insurance or tax. In this article I go through some of the issues you can face, both in the eyes of the criminal and civil law.
Riding without an MOT is a common one. I must admit, I have been caught out by this on occasions. A tax reminder drops through the letterbox each year, but your MOT has no such reminder. If stopped by the police, then expect a fixed penalty notice of £100.00 but no penalty points. It is very likely your motorcycle insurer has a ‘keep roadworthy’ clause hidden amongst the terms and conditions. Not having an MOT might be evidence of your bike not being in a roadworthy condition. I have seen insurer’s trawling through the MOT history website, looking for serious defects which were not rectified and rejecting a claim on that basis. This information is easily accessed by anyone with a computer and knowledge of your registration number. This is a straightforward breach of contract issue between you and your insurer so be aware and set your own MOT reminder.
On the subject of no MOT, if the condition of the bike is so poor that it really shouldn’t be on the road, a trained police officer has the power to prohibit the vehicle from moving (known as a PG9). It must then be recovered, and the defects rectified before the prohibition is removed. Riding a prohibited vehicle is an offence.
Ex turpi causa non oritur actio is a legal doctrine which states a claimant cannot bring an action if it arises from his own illegal act. There have been many attempts by defendant insurers to argue this doctrine in a civil claim. These have been largely unsuccessful but occasionally one gets through. One particular case springs to mind, a chap riding a big shiny Harley Davidson (no, that isn’t an illegal act in itself) gets knocked off his bike by a car driver pulling out of a junction. A classic case of sorry mate, I just didn’t see you. It just so happens the Harley is uninsured as the rider wrongly assumed it would auto-renew. It didn’t. The defendant argues the rider is in fact riding illegally and therefore he should not be able to recover his losses i.e. his injury claim, or damage to the bike etc. To the lay person this might scare them into withdrawing their claim. However, the fact the Harley was uninsured was not causative of the accident. It was caused by the blind driver pulling out, therefore the claim would succeed on a 100% basis. Ex turpi causa fails. I have had similar cases where speed is alleged, but thankfully civil Judges see through these attempts to derail the litigation, instead preferring to split liability on a percentage basis where a speeding biker has contributed to the accident. Expect a 20% reduction for excess speed and 40% for grossly excessive speed. A recent case of Buster Angus Stark v Tabitha Lyddon [2019] EWHC 2076 (QB) involved the biker travelling at 70mph in a 30mph limit, he won his case against the car driver, who pulled across his path resulting in a collision but was found to be 70% contributory negligent.
Road tax, or as it is now called vehicle excise licence, is less easy to forget as you get a reminder. However, it no longer follows the vehicle. I remember the good old days when having a bit of road tax left on the bike was a bargaining tool over the sale price. As soon as the motorcycle changes hands, a refund is due to the seller and the buyer must re-tax it. I am sure this has been a nice cash cow for the DVLA as there will undoubtedly be people who do not cash their refund cheque and the money remains with DVLA. Where does this money end up? I have no idea, but I suspect this is a sizeable sum.
If caught riding without vehicle excise licence the police now have devolved powers to seize the vehicle. This is a DVLA power but now used by the police. I cannot remember the last time I saw a DVLA tax enforcement checkpoint. I suspect they have really rolled back their own enforcement practices due to cost. They can and still do pursue tax dodgers through the courts. The penalty for riding without tax is a Level 3 fine (up to £1,000.00) or five times the annual duty, whichever is greater.
On the subject of vehicle seizure. If you think about failing to stop for police is a smart move, then I am afraid S.165A of the Road Traffic Act 1988 gives the police 24 hours to seize the vehicle. Having a game of cat and mouse with a disgruntled cop is probably not a smart move. Not that I imagine any of our members would contemplate such action!
Some of us will tuck our bikes up for the winter. I won’t, which does pain me when I see my GSA getting covered in winter muck, but I suppose that is what it was built for. I think digging out some ACF50 will be a sensible move. For those who will get their bikes out in April 2023, remember to check the boring stuff. The paperwork. Else you may be dealing with more paperwork, from the police or court. Safe riding everyone.
Gavin Grewal
TVAM Slipstream
