Road Accident Claims against Uninsured Drivers Are Payable By the Motor Insurers' Bureau

The Motor Insurers' Bureau ("MIB") was established in 1946 as an organisation to deal with road accident compensation claims by innocent victims who have suffered personal injury or damage to their property because of a negligent uninsured or untraced driver.

Every insurance company underwriting compulsory road accident claim motor insurance is obliged to be a member of the MIB and to contribute to its funding. One out of every 20 drivers is uninsured!

The MIB must pay compensation where the negligent driver is found to be responsible for personal injury or damage to property arising from a road accident. The MIB stands in place of the guilty party's insurers and investigates issues of liability and valuation in the same way as in any other road accident compensation claim.

The MIB's rules and timescales must be strictly adhered to; otherwise the road accident claim may be lost simply on a technicality. Therefore most people prefer to instruct experienced claims solicitors to make their road accident claim.

Where the guilty party is known but is uninsured, the MIB will pay legal costs as well as road accident compensation in a successful claim. Therefore, these claims can be handled by solicitors on a "No Win No Fee" claims basis. Specific issues to bear in mind include:-

- claims must usually be made within 3 years of the accident;

- a £300 excess applies to any claims for damage to property, and which is deducted from the total amount claimed;

- if you have comprehensive motor insurance you cannot claim for damage to your vehicle and must instead liaise with your own insurers.

If the guilty party is not known (eg in a hit and run) a claim can still be made, but the process is much more stringent. In particular, the MIB will only pay very limited legal costs and it is therefore not usually possible for a solicitor to work on a "No Win No Fee" claims basis. However, if the injuries are severe it is still advisable to seek legal advice to ensure the appropriate level of road accident compensation is achieved. Specific issues to consider in these accident claims include:-

- the matter must usually be reported to the Police within 14 days of the accident;

- a claim for road accident compensation must usually be made within 3 years of the accident, but if the claim is for damage to property only this period is reduced to 9 months;

- a £300 excess applies to any claims for damage to property, and if you have comprehensive motor insurance you cannot claim for any damage to your vehicle;

- if the vehicle that caused the accident cannot be identified no claim for damaged property can be made, but a claim for personal injury compensation can be pursued.

Therefore, if you have grounds to make a road accident claim but have not pursued the matter because the guilty party is either uninsured or unidentified, you may still have the ability to claim road accident compensation.