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Get up to Speed on Your MID Status

26 November 2012

There's no question that a fully insured fleet is a must-have. Making sure your drivers and vehicles are covered by the correct insurance is one of the basics of fleet management. But along with this comes an extra responsibility that some businesses aren't unaware of: all the cars in your fleet must also be registered on the Motor Insurance Database.

What is the MID and why is it important?

With around one in twenty cars on Britain's roads without proper insurance, the Motor Insurance Database (MID) was created by the insurance industry to help improve these statistics by cracking down on uninsured drivers. The database provides a log of every motorist's policy information and it is the legal responsibility of a car's registered owner to ensure that their vehicle is on the database.

So, how do you check whether your vehicles are registered?

There are two ways this can be done: either by calling your insurance provider - who can access your MID records for you - or by visiting www.askmid.com and confirming your vehicles' registration for yourself via the online system.

Is there anything else to consider?

On top of registering cars on the MID when they join your fleet, it's important to note that when a vehicle is defleeted you are required to take it off the database again. Keeping accurate records and integrating MID deregistration into your defleeting process will make this task much easier. Finally, it is worth noting that if your business hires a vehicle on a temporary basis for a period that exceeds 14 days, it must also be registered on the MID system.

With the increasing crack down on unregistered vehicles, it's in fleet managers' best interests to ensure that they know the status of their vehicles. For more information on the MID, visit the Motor Insurers' Bureau website .

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