§ 13. Mr. Roseasked the Minister of Transport what has been the result of his consultations with the Home Secretary in relation to vehicles written off by insurance companies and subsequently repaired and sold after an accident.
§ Mr. Tom FraserMeasures are being taken to ensure that the arrangements which exist between my traffic area staffs and the police for investigating reports of the sale of unroadworthy vehicles are fully used. It would make enforcement easier if such reports were made immediately the facts are known.
§ Mr. RoseWill my right hon. Friend bear in mind that this practice is becoming alarmingly prevalent? Will he also bear in mind that the purchasers of these cars very often do not know the history of them, and that they are therefore put in real physical danger? Will my right hon. Friend use the powers available to him under the Road Traffic Act to deal with this problem, and in some way safeguard the interests of the purchaser?
§ Mr. FraserOne of the real difficulties is that one does not know which vehicles are written off by insurance companies and subsequently repaired, nor does one know the number of vehicles, carrying only third party insurance, which are not involved in an accident with another vehicle but merely crash themselves, so that there is no question of an insurance company being involved. Such cars can be cannibalised, if that is not an improper 434 word to use in this context, and put back on the road without anybody in official circles knowing anything about them. We are investigating this matter. We are in consultation with insurance interests to see what more can be done, but the best safeguard for the purchaser of a second-hand car is to get a report on it from a reputable garage, or from the R.A.C. or the A.A.