POLICE in Cleveland and Durham will join other forces throughout the UK from today in a targeted campaign to remove uninsured drivers from the roads.

Operation Drive Insured, which takes place for one week, will see officers out in force to stop drivers without insurance from using the roads.

Uninsured drivers are often involved in a wide range of criminal activities. Every year there are hundreds of incidents where an uninsured driver is found without a driving licence or using an untaxed or stolen vehicle. Records also show a number of offenders are caught driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

A high number of collisions involve uninsured drivers. In 2017, the Motor Insurers Bureau (MIB) received 11,000 claims from victims of uninsured drivers, with hundreds of people who had suffered catastrophic, life changing injuries.

Sergeant Jonathan Stokeld, from the Cleveland and Durham Specialist Operations Unit, said: “Driving without insurance is unacceptable and puts road users in danger. Not only are these people committing road traffic offences, but often they are also committing secondary offences such as drugs offences. Denying them the use of the roads can prevent further offending. Officers will make use of Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) technology throughout this campaign."