What is impound insurance?
Impound insurance, generally known as impounded vehicle insurance, is a policy that helps you get your vehicle released from the police pound. Unfortunately, a standard insurance policy obtained from a regular insurance provider will not qualify as affordable insurance to gain to impounded vehicle back. Only a particular impounded policy for impounded cars will allow this.
Insurance policies will last for at least 30 days. At the point of expiry of your impounded car insurance policy, you should have a standard car insurance policy in place.
Impounding of a vehicle
Cars and other vehicles like vans are generally impounded through a lack of insurance. If the vehicle is not insured, it will be impounded on the spot.
When you insure your vehicle with an insurance provider, they put those details on a database known as the Motor insurance Database (MID), the police have the power and access to this database through several systems such as the automatic number plate system recognition and they can quickly see if your vehicle has valid insurance. On that basis, they have the power to impound your vehicle unless you can prove otherwise.
In some cases, when a driver initially insures their vehicle, there is often a delay in the notification to the MID (Motor Insurance Database) it can take a week for the database to update.
If the police caught you and state you have no insurance recorded, you can explain it is newly insured and the police can call your insurance provider directly to confirm this which is a demand for the driver to go into the police pound and produce the insurance documents within a period. If the police are not satisfied that the car has proper insurance at this time they can quickly impound the vehicle and take it to the pound, once this has occurred you have to go through the right processes to have your vehicle retrieved from the pound.
 If your vehicle has been impounded, you will be worried and confused particularly if you are not a registered owner. At Release my vehicle, we support many people who find themselves in this worrying and costly circumstance.
What will be the cost of releasing an impounded vehicle?
Unfortunately, there are several costs you could have to pay at the police pound.
- Any outstanding fines, if your vehicle was impounded for non-payment of fees, will be a hefty amount.Â
- If your vehicle was taken for non-payment of car tax, you will also have to pay that. Alternatively, you can also pay a surety deposit for vehicles which you can then reclaim if you settle your tax bill within 2 weeks.Â
- Removal charges vary depending on the condition and weight of the vehicle. For vehicles in a good position, the cost will be less but if they have been badly managed in an accident, the cost will increase.
- Storage charges per day.
- Most insurers will not cover you for driving your vehicle away from the police pound, therefore, you should take out specialist cover.
Impounded car insurance, if you are not the registered owner of the vehicle, is available too. So the costs really increase and will keep rising the longer it takes you to release your vehicle.
What documents do you need to release an impounded vehicle?
If your vehicle has been impounded, you will receive an impound notice explaining all the paperwork you are required to present. It can vary from one pound to other. So it is ideal to double-check before you set off. Documents you need to bring are the following:
- Driving license
- Insurance policy
- Prof that you are the registered owner of the vehicle
- Ids such as a passport or utility or utility bill
If you don’t have insurance, you should take out a specialist insurance policy to allow you to drive the vehicle away. Impounded car insurance if you are the registered owner is also available just call us at Release my vehicle.
You will have to present all this information at the local police pound before being given a release form to take to your police pound.
Why standard car insurance will not be enough?
Many car insurance providers particularly exclude collecting cars from the police pound. So you could also need to find a special policy to cover you. Given that having your vehicle impounded is already a tough moment, this could be another one. Fortunately, Release my vehicle has got years of experience in providing cover and we will search our panel of expert insurance providers to find you a policy that meets your requirements.
This could even be impounded car insurance for someone who is not the registered owner of the vehicle that you want to be released. This insurance usually covers you for 30 days providing you enough time to get your affairs in order for the longer term.
Can someone else collect your impounded car?
Generally, the registered owner of the vehicle is the person who requires to present at the police pound. There are some expectations:
- If you are not well
- Out of the country
- If you have other compelling compassionate situations that save you from coming alone.
You will also need to prove that one of these situations applies, so contact the relevant police pound to find out what they will accept.
Your friend or belonging will also need to present:
- An authority letter consenting to them retrieving your vehicle signed by you.
- Logbook
- Driving license
- Personal ID
They should also prove they are insured to drive their car away from the police pound. It can be tough, as their own insurance is more likely to particularly exclude this scenario.
Instead, you may well have to name them on your own special policy. Therefore, contact us to get an insurance quote for impounded car insurance for someone who is not the registered owner of the vehicle. We have got years of experience in making this procedure as easy as possible for you.
