UK Crushed 45,000 Cars In 2007 For Lack Of Insurance, Shouldn't We Do The Same?

Agreed. Imagine getting hit by an illegal alien who wasnt supposed to even be driving. Or getting rearended and hurt by a careless driver without insurance. Unfortunately, severe measures are needed to keep some people in check.

This is a stupid waste deigned by corrupt politicians who want to be seen to be doing something while helping the auto industry by increasing demand for cars. It is similar to the policy of not selling surplus military vehicles in the civilian market.
I'm sure the corrupt insurance industry has something to do with this also -- they would love to see all old cars off the road so as to reduce claims.

How about getting sued by the illegal scum who drive on our roads without a license AND insurance and have the audacity to sue the law abiding drivers because they both were involved in a petty accident? This happenned to us TWICE in Texas. It is just sad. And nothing is done by the government.

sadly enough that happened to me. the guy hit my 745 while it was parked (with me in it) then got out of his car and ran! not only didn't he have insurance but the car wasn't even registered!

Crushing the cars just hurt more for the uninsured.

seriously, what the hell do they gain from crushing them?

I think the general idea was that they are not road worthy. Perhaps they are actually worth more as scap than automobiles. I remember a friend of mine in college had a car that actually was deemed "road worthy" by the state but probably wasnt worth 50 bucks...

They were all beaters and most likely gross polluters that the owners don't want to pay insurance for. Still an on going issue and the UK just wants those cars off the roads.

The only fair way is to pass a law that forces the government to buy the beaters at a fair price. If the car industry would reverse the march to complexity and make cars easier to fix by owners, we would not have this problem. The car industry deliberately produces cars that rust out prematurely although, with modern electro-galvanization, car bodies have been lasting longer.

BTW, the car industry has been using other tricks to promote obsolescence recently such as designing spokes on alloy wheels that stick out instead of in so that expensive damage occurs when the rim inevitably rubs against a concrete curb; similarly, some bumpers hang too low to avoid damage when parking nose first against a curb or parking lot divider. Many cars and SUVs are sold without front passenger seat height adjustment in order to get the customer fed up with banging his head against the roof when getting in and out of the vehicle -- this and overly firm seats cause consumers to become disgusted with their their vehicle over a short time and encourages them to trade in for a newer model which will have some new hidden problems of the foregoing kind.

EnnNorak,
By forcing "the government", or you and I to purchase the uninsured beaters, this gives the uninsured an advantage over the insured. I'd love to force "the government", or you to purchase my insured 1998 Pontiac.

People who refer to their government as a separate entity from themselves are a burden on the country in which they legally live.

EnnNorak

Relax, Althought Im not discrediting what you said in any way. Im sure not everything is a conspiracy.

"western USA"..."brown cloud".

You don't happen to live in Denver do you?

Clearly they don't crush all the seized autos, as in the article it states that 100,000 vehicles were seized in 2007, of that 45,000 were crushed. I'm guessing the vehicles that were not road worthy and worth nothing at auction were crushed, others were sold.

From my understanding the motorist is given 14 days to get insurance, pay the fine, and cough up the impound fee.

If they fail the car gets crushed.

Doing something of this nature would surely make driving in Las Vegas a much safe proposition...

'safer'

Greedy insurance companies are just as bad if not worse then the poor people who drive without insurance. They make huge profits on something which is mandatory by law. I believe they should not be allowed to make a profit on basic minimum liability insurance required by law but only on the insurance they up sell on top of your basic coverage like comprehensive insurance or fire, theft etc…. You never here them loosing money like car manufacturers, because all they have to do is raise their premiums to makeup for any loses. If you are male you pay more, instant discrimination I’m surprised they don’t profile by race or color. Also they get all your personal info to generate a profile before they give you a quote. They should never get your full name or your exact address for only a quote. They need lots of information form you to give them more reasons to raise your premium also it takes time so you won’t want to shop around. I believe once you purchase insurance from them only then they can run all the checks they want, to confirm your information. They also give you small discounts for years of safe driving and no clams but punish you severely for a couple of minor speeding tickets. When shopping for car insurance shop around don’t trust these crooks. I’m surprised struggling car manufacturers like Ford, GM, and Chrysler don’t offer in-house insurance to increase their sales. Crushing cars is cool but it’s stupid it’s like throwing money away, auction them off and give the money to charity.

Sounds like the UK are turning into Communist.

:-(

Sounds more like their finally holding these individuals accountable!

Some of the vehicles driving around Las Vegas are not fit for the road, with various fairings, hub-caps et al flying all over the place as they putter along their merry way oblivious to the potential harm they may be causing those driving in their general vicinity.

We won't even begin to question whether they're insured or not...

no, you just need a new BRAIN. or a brain, period.

They cracked down big time on this after a lot of publicity last year. Good! I know they got rid of 3 from my road! Bloody Jeep being there for 1 month, untaxed and uninsured...then the tow truck came!

thats one way of reducing traffic

bravo UK! get it of those free loaders.

I find it interesting that no one has taken into account that maybe these people can't afford new cars, or insurance. If they live like I do, then even a $20 increase in any area would be a massive hit. I have insurance, but it's nearly $100 a month! If that were to go up at all, or gas up above $3.30, I could no longer afford that. And the bus system here is worthless, and it's snowy, so bikes are out as well. Not to mention that to get anywhere important inlvolves 5+ miles of driving.

Point is, this would be WAY too harsh, especially for those who can't afford insurance at these REDICULOUS rates.