The MID (Motor Insurance Database) contains the insurance policy details of all insured UK vehicles. It is accessed by different people, in different ways, for different purposes.

The Motor Insurance Database (MID) is the only centralised database of motor insurance policy information for all insured vehicles.

All insurers who underwrite motor insurance for vehicles on UK roads are obliged to be members of the MIB and to submit the policy details of ALL vehicles to the MID.

The process of getting the information to the MID is managed by MIB but the data is loaded directly by the insurers and their representatives.

Updates are made to the database round the clock, every day of the year. Insurance companies and those acting on their behalf endeavour to get data about new policies and revisions to existing policies to the database as soon as they can. However, policy information cannot always be updated to the database immediately. 

There are targets for insurance companies to get their data onto the database in a timely and accurate manner.

Insurers are financially penalised if their data does not reach the database within timescales set by the Department for Transport (DfT).

The database can be used by various public bodies such as the police, the DVLA and by insurers and the MIB itself.

Any driver may check that their vehicle is registered on the MID by using www.askmid.com. Find out more about checking your vehicle on the MID. 

Individuals who wish to know what data is held about them on the database can enquire via the UK Information Centre. 

Victims of accidents involving a UK vehicle can enquire via www.askMID.com to obtain the insurance details of the other vehicle either at the roadside or later.

Solicitors, and other organisations working on behalf of clients who are victims may be able to use the online enquiry system www.askmid.com. Find out more about vehicle check services for frequent users.

www.askmid.com is a website which enables you to make enquiries of the MID.

It accesses the MID in real time. This is the same MID which the police access although the police (and other corporate users) receive more detailed information from the database. 

askMID currently offers two services:

Check your own vehicle (free) 

Check someone else's vehicle (small charge)

The own vehicle service enables you to check that the vehicle you intend to drive is currently on the database. By entering the registration number of the vehicle, the presence of a policy will be confirmed by displaying "YES" and in some cases by confirming the make/model of the vehicle (if this information is provided by the insurer). 

If you believe you are insured but no record is found on the MID, you should get in touch with the insurer or the person responsible for insuring the vehicle to ensure the MID is updated. If you do not do this you are at risk of being suspected of driving uninsured, being stopped by the police and possibly having your car seized. 

The other vehicle check enables you to check on a vehicle you have had an accident with. Entering the registration number of the vehicle and the accident date will let you know if the other vehicle has details on the MID, and if so, will provide the insurance details (name of insurer and policy number). 

If you have queries about askMID please contact askmidsupport@mib.org.uk

The police are the Motor Insurance Database's (MID) biggest user, making over 2 million enquiries every month.  

The police have access to the database to assist in the identification of uninsured vehicles and to enhance their enforcement powers to remove them from our roads.

The MIB, which runs the MID, provides British police forces with an extract of data showing potentially uninsured vehicles.

This data is used within Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras throughout the UK. This means that if a vehicle passes an ANPR camera it is likely to be stopped if it is not showing insured. 

The police can seize any vehicle where they have reasonable grounds to believe it is uninsured. To support the police in the fight against uninsured driving, the MIB runs a dedicated Police Helpline. This Helpline supports difficult roadside situations where there is doubt over the validity of insurance cover.

Around 115,000 vehicles are seized for no insurance every year and approximately 30% are subsequently sold or destroyed.

There is a lot of European regulation covering uninsured driving.

The EU Fourth Motor Insurance Directive laid down "special provisions applicable to injured parties entitled to compensation in respect of any loss or injury resulting from accidents occurring in a Member State other than the Member State of residence of the injured party which are caused by the use of vehicles insured and normally based in a Member State."

The Fourth Directive and other Motor Insurance Directives now form part of the Codified Directive 2009/103/EC.

The Fourth Directive required the setting up of an Information Centre, in the UK this is the UKIC (UK Information Centre) at MIB, and a Compensation Body (also at MIB).

The Information Centre is responsible for keeping a register of motor vehicles normally based in the country. In the UK, the register used is the MID - allowing the Information Centre to quickly identify the insurer of a UK vehicle by its registration number.

The Information Centre is responsible for maintaining a list of all Claims Representatives in each EU country for each UK Insurer. The Information Centre facilitates cross-border claims by taking enquiries from UK victims about EU vehicles, and enquiries from EU victims about UK vehicles, communicating with all the corresponding Information Centres in the EU/EEA. 

To find the Claims Representative (under the EU Fourth Motor Insurance Directive) in any EEA country for any UK Insurer, please visit www.midis.org.uk.

Anyone can check that the vehicle they are about to drive has a record of insurance on the MID by using www.askmid.com.

It is also possible to check the MID using www.askmid.com following an accident to determine if the other vehicle was insured (there is a fee for this service).

The UKIC (UK Information Centre) can reveal specific and limited insurance information to an enquirer.  For accident victims this information is limited to the name and address of the insurance company, the policy number and the UK claims representative (if a non-UK insurer).

MIB takes data security seriously. For that reason we have invested heavily in ensuring that our processes maintain the ISO 27001 security certification. We only release the minimum of data and only where there is a legitimate reason to do so.