Understanding the duration of a driver’s conviction is crucial, as it directly impacts how long it stays on their licence and how long they must declare it to certain authorities. For instance, drink driving offences and some more serious convictions remain on your licence for 11 years. These include drink and drug offences shown on the driving record as DR10, DR20, DR30, DR31, DR61 and DR80.
It’s important to note that under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974, a conviction for a drunk driving offence is considered “spent” after five years. This means that insurance companies are not legally allowed to disadvantage a driver for a conviction that is considered “spent”. While some firms may ask about “endorsements” on your licence in the previous 11 years, this was deemed unlawful by a High Court ruling in 2002.
In short, an insurance provider is not allowed to make policy decisions based on convictions considered spent, and if decisions, including higher policy charges, are implemented based on spent convictions, a complaint can be made against the company.
Insurers ask about previous convictions for drunk driving to gain insight into a driver’s past behaviour. They use statistical modelling to predict the likelihood of a driver making a claim in the future, considering various factors. This often leads to the conclusion that a driver with a previous DR10 or related conviction is more likely to make a claim in the future, which can result in higher premiums for those drivers – but not once five years have passed. Some insurers may even refuse to insure drivers with previous drink driving convictions due to the perceived high risk.
Even with that being the case, it’s of paramount importance that someone seeking drink driver insurance always declares a drink driving conviction when attempting to take out a policy, as the nondisclosure of information could result in a policy being invalidated if one were to attempt to claim the policy at a later date, resulting in non-payment of a claim.
With all this being said, Insurance Revolution specialises in providing drunk driver insurance for vehicles and drivers, and we have extensive experience in providing policies for drivers with drunk driving convictions. While providers may consider a driver with a drink driving conviction high risk, we believe it should not cost you the earth to get a drink driver insurance policy. We can help you find a competitive policy fast. If you’re unsure of how to proceed with acquiring insurance post-conviction, get in touch with one of our advisors, who will be able to talk you through the process and offer you a competitive quote to help you get back on the road.
Please visit our dedicated website page to learn more about our drink driver insurance policies.