Quick answer
Discovering that the driver who hit you has no insurance can feel like a second blow on top of the accident itself. You did everything right, you were not at fault, and now the obvious route to compensation - the other driver's insurer - simply is not there. The reassuring news is that the UK has a long-established safety net for exactly this situation: the Motor Insurers' Bureau, funded by a levy on every motor insurance policy, exists to compensate the victims of uninsured and untraced drivers. Being hit by an uninsured driver does not mean you are left to carry the loss yourself.
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An uninsured driver hit me: your options and the MIB (UK)
Discovering that the driver who hit you has no insurance can feel like a second blow on top of the accident itself. You did everything right, you were not at fault, and now the obvious route to compensation - the other driver's insurer - simply is not there. The reassuring news is that the UK has a long-established safety net for exactly this situation: the Motor Insurers' Bureau, funded by a levy on every motor insurance policy, exists to compensate the victims of uninsured and untraced drivers. Being hit by an uninsured driver does not mean you are left to carry the loss yourself.
This guide explains your options when an uninsured driver hits you in the UK, how the Motor Insurers' Bureau works, the time limits and conditions that apply, what to do at the scene, and how the practical side - recovery, repairs and a replacement car - is handled. Our dedicated support pages are at /uninsured-driver-accident-support and /mib-uninsured-driver-claim, and where the driver also failed to stop, the hit-and-run guidance is at /hit-and-run-accident-support.
Driving uninsured is an offence - and the MIB is the safety net
Using a vehicle without insurance is a criminal offence. Section 143 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 provides that a person must not use a motor vehicle on a road or other public place unless there is in force a policy of insurance that complies with the Act, and that acting in contravention is an offence under section 143(2). That obligation is the foundation of compulsory motor insurance in the UK, and it exists precisely so that innocent victims can be compensated. When a driver breaks it and causes a collision, the gap they leave is filled by the Motor Insurers' Bureau.
The Motor Insurers' Bureau (MIB) is the body that compensates victims of uninsured and untraced drivers, under agreements it holds with the government. It is funded by a levy built into every motor insurance premium in the country, so in effect law-abiding insured drivers collectively underwrite the cost of those who break the law. There are two relevant schemes: the Uninsured Drivers' Agreement 2017, which applies where the driver who hit you is identified but had no valid insurance, and the Untraced Drivers' Agreement 2017, which applies where the driver cannot be identified at all, such as a hit-and-run. The MIB can compensate drivers, passengers, pedestrians, cyclists and other road users.
DETAIL
Section 3 of the walkthrough.
Uninsured versus untraced: which agreement applies
It matters which of the two MIB schemes your case falls under, because the conditions differ.
Uninsured driver (identified). You have the other driver's identity - a name, or at least a traceable registration leading to a keeper - but they had no valid policy in force. This is handled under the Uninsured Drivers' Agreement 2017. Because the driver is identified, claims for personal injury and for property damage (your vehicle and its contents) can both be pursued, subject to the agreement's conditions.
Untraced driver (unidentified). You cannot identify the driver at all, typically a hit-and-run where they made off and the vehicle was never traced. This falls under the Untraced Drivers' Agreement 2017. Personal injury claims are covered, and property damage can be claimed in more limited circumstances, generally only where there has also been significant personal injury, reflecting the harder evidential position when no one can be identified.
Foreign-registered vehicle. Where the vehicle that hit you was registered abroad, the MIB also has a role in helping victims pursue compensation, working with its counterpart bodies in other countries.
The conditions and time limits you need to know
The MIB schemes come with conditions, and missing one can put a claim at risk, which is one of the main reasons it pays to have the claim handled properly from the start. Report the accident to the police as soon as you reasonably can - this is especially important in an untraced or hit-and-run case, where a prompt police report and the resulting reference number are central to the claim. Cooperate with the police, give a statement, and keep every reference number, because the MIB will expect to see that the incident was properly reported.
On timing, the underlying limitation periods still apply: under section 11 of the Limitation Act 1980 you generally have three years from the date of injury for a personal injury claim, and under section 2 you generally have six years from the date of the accident for property damage. The MIB agreements also set their own application requirements and shorter notification expectations in some circumstances, particularly for property damage and for untraced cases, and an excess applies to property damage claims under the schemes. Because the interaction of the general limitation rules and the specific MIB conditions is not straightforward, the safe course is to open the file and get advice early rather than relying on the longest possible deadline. We can guide you through the right route and the applicable conditions for your situation, and the detail is set out at /mib-uninsured-driver-claim.
Check first: are you covered another way?
Before going down the MIB route, it is worth checking whether another avenue covers you, because it can sometimes be quicker. If you hold a fully comprehensive policy, your own insurer can repair your car regardless of the other driver being uninsured, though you would normally have to pay your excess and your no-claims discount could be affected unless and until your insurer recovers from the uninsured driver. Some policies include uninsured driver promise cover, which protects your no-claims discount and refunds your excess where you can show the accident was the uninsured driver's fault and you can identify them. Legal expenses cover, if you have it, can also help fund a claim.
The trade-off is real, though. Claiming on your own comprehensive policy for someone else's fault means fronting your excess and risking your premium, even though you were not to blame. The attraction of pursuing the at-fault side - here, through the MIB - is that it is designed to put the cost where it belongs. We help you weigh the options for your circumstances, and the support page at /uninsured-driver-accident-support explains the routes side by side.
What to do at the scene if you suspect the driver is uninsured
Stop and check for injuries - section 170 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 requires you to stop after any accident involving injury or damage. Switch on hazards and make the scene safe. If anyone is injured, if the other driver is behaving aggressively, or if you suspect they are uninsured or have given false details, call the police; an uninsured driver is committing an offence, and police involvement at the scene helps secure the evidence.
Get as much identifying information as you can. Section 170(2) requires drivers to give their name, address, the keeper's details and the registration, but an uninsured driver may be evasive or untruthful, so record the registration yourself first of all, along with the make, model and colour, and a description of the driver. Where someone is injured, section 170(5) and (7) require a driver to produce their insurance certificate, at the scene or at a police station within seven days - a failure or inability to do so is itself telling. If the driver makes off, note everything and report it to the police within 24 hours under section 170(6), and treat it as a potential untraced claim.
Photograph everything: both vehicles and number plates, the damage, the positions, the road layout and any CCTV cameras you can see, since footage that captures the other vehicle and helps trace or identify the driver is invaluable and is often overwritten within 14 to 31 days. Get the name and number of every witness; in an uninsured or untraced case, independent witnesses who can confirm what happened and describe the other vehicle are particularly important.
Recovery, repairs and a replacement car
Being hit by an uninsured driver does not mean you are stuck with an undriveable car at the roadside. We arrange 24/7 recovery and secure storage straight away, so your vehicle is removed from danger and not accruing charges, while the claim route is established. Our accident management runs in parallel with sorting out the MIB or own-insurer position, so the practical recovery does not wait for the liability route to be confirmed.
An independent engineer then inspects the car before any repair, fixing the correct repair scope and recording any pre-existing damage, and repairs follow at a vetted bodyshop working to PAS 125 or BS 10125 standards. Where you need a replacement vehicle, the credit hire framework under Lagden v O'Connor [2003] UKHL 64 and Dimond v Lovell [2002] 1 AC 384 can apply, recovering the reasonable cost of a like-for-like vehicle from the responsible party, though the position in an uninsured or untraced case depends on the route and the MIB conditions, which we will explain for your circumstances. The uninsured and hit-and-run support pages at /uninsured-driver-accident-support and /hit-and-run-accident-support set out how the practical side is coordinated alongside the claim.
Why getting it handled properly matters here
Uninsured and untraced claims are more procedural than an ordinary claim against an insured at-fault driver, because the MIB schemes carry their own conditions, notification requirements and excesses, and a misstep at the start - a late police report, a missed notification, an incomplete evidence pack - can weaken or even defeat a claim that should have succeeded. This is precisely the kind of situation where an accident management partner earns its place: we make sure the incident is reported correctly, the evidence is preserved while it still exists, the right scheme is engaged, and the practical recovery of your vehicle happens immediately rather than waiting on the paperwork.
We are an accident management business, not a solicitor and not a specialist panel solicitor. Where your case needs legal representation, including the personal injury element of an MIB claim, we refer you, only with your written consent, to an appropriate authorised partner. The vehicle side - recovery, inspection, repairs and a replacement - we coordinate for you. To start, see /mib-uninsured-driver-claim for the MIB route, /uninsured-driver-accident-support for your options overall, and /hit-and-run-accident-support if the driver failed to stop.
Take action
If you have just been in a non-fault collision, the fastest way to protect your claim is to open the file with us inside the first hour. We dispatch recovery, lodge the relevant CCTV requests inside the retention window, and notify the third-party insurer for you.
