UK: What documentation must be in your car?

Hi all,

The discussion of auto insurance in another thread got me thinking about documentation that must be in the vehicle.  Back in Texas if you get pulled over you have to show your drivers' license and proof of insurance.

I searched the internet for a bit but couldn't find anything.  In the UK, what documentation must you have with you in the car?

{edit} Of course, 2 minutes after I post this, I think I found the answer on this page.

Production of documents. You MUST be able to produce your driving licence and counterpart, a valid insurance certificate and (if appropriate) a valid MOT certificate, when requested by a police officer. If you cannot do this you may be asked to take them to a police station within seven days.

thanks,
Carl

except I've been told not to keep those things in my car and that if I needed them I would bring them in later.  I'm certainly not going to keep the counterpart of my licence in the car.

I just carry my card licence on me.  I don't keep my major insurance papers in the car, although I do have a small proof of insurance card.  I don't think this is the norm though.  I'm insured with USAA through their London office, which uses many similar policies to US insurance ones.

This is a question to which the answer is rather more complicated than a simple "you must have" or "you need not have" if you want the full picture.

It's widely believed by British motorists that there is no requirement to carry any documents with you in the car (except the tax disk, which must be on display, of course).  That's true to an extent, but it's not quite that simple.

There is no specific legislation which says that you must carry your license, proof of insurance, etc. with you when driving.  So in the strictest sense, you are not obliged to have any of them with you.  However, technically, you commit an offense if you are unable to produce any of those documents upon demand to a police officer, which means that you would need to have them all with you at all times in order to avoid the chance of breaking the law if you happened to be stopped.

However the law also states that it "shall be a defence" to such a charge if you produce the required documents at a nominated police station within 7 days.  So although technically you might have broken the law if you cannot show your license etc. upon demand, in practice all that happens is that the officer will give you a ticket which requires you to turn up at a police station within the required period.   So long as you do so -- and all of those documents are in order, of course -- then the matter is closed and no further action taken.   If you don't show up, then it would be referred to be considered for prosecution.

Until very recently the above would have covered everything, but unfortunately there are now further considerations with regard to proof of insurance.  Police officers have been given powers to seize vehicles from drivers they have reasonable cause to believe to be uninsured. 

Unfortunately, some police forces and individual officers are exceeding their authority and trying to seize vehicles from people who cannot produce proof of insurance on the spot, or prove cover by other means, even though they are not allowed to do this.  So today, it's probably a good idea to make sure you carry your insurance certificate in the glove compartment, just to avoid any problems if you happen to run into one of these gestapo agents who are misapplying the law.  At least you should keep a record of your insurance company name, policy number and so on in the car so that checks can be made easily at the roadside.

except I've been told not to keep those things in my car

I hear that quoted often, generally with claims that having the papers might help a thief.  I really don't see how it will make much difference.  If the car is stolen, the fact that your registration, MoT, and insurance certificates have gone with it is hardly important by comparison. 

You don't need to carry any with you (with the exception of the tax disc on the windscreen), if you are stopped and the police wish to see the documents you will be issued with a "producer" and you take your documents to a local police station within 7 days. I never have any of my documentation, and I've never been asked by the police for them on the 2 or 3 occasions I was stopped.

the officer will give you a ticket which requires you to turn up at a police station within the required period.

In London police (and criminal) slang, this ticket is known as a "producer".

Thanks everyone for the clarifications.

adios,
Carl

In London police (and criminal) slang, this ticket is known as a "producer".

It's also sometimes referred to as an HORT1, from the official designation of the form used.  The officer will complete the form to tell you which documents need to be produced, e.g. if he has already seen your driver's license the form might just ask for proof of insurance and MoT certificate.

I've never been asked by the police for them on the 2 or 3 occasions I was stopped.

It can vary, depending upon circumstances and the reason for the stop.  For example, now that there is the motor insurance database, the officer can have run your plate and found if a policy exists for your car before he even pulls you over.  That's not conclusive, since until he stops you he doesn't actually know who is driving and the database is not reliable, but it's a guide.  Ditto with MoT certificates, which are now mostly computerized so that a check can be made before the stop.

The last time I was pulled over about two years ago the officer didn't see anything but my driver's license -- Probably would have asked if I had it given the circumstances, but I had already offered it anyway as the easiest way to provide name and address.

Just after the war, my father told me, he used to keep a ten-shilling note folded up in his licence. Sometimes it wouldn't be there when he got the licence back after a stop, especially if he'd been in the wrong.