Motor insurance certificates: paper is passé

The Department for Transport has announced a consultation on removing the requirement for insurance certificates to be issued. The web site says:

This consultation seeks views on amending the Road Traffic Act 1988 to remove the need for insurers to issue a motor insurance certificate when an insurance policy is taken out. At present the certificate is used as evidence of valid insurance cover and there are circumstances when it must be produced by the insured to demonstrate they have valid cover. 

Insurers are required by law to enter details of all motor insurance policies onto the motor insurance database (MID). This consultation document considers using the MID as the single source for checking if insurance cover is in place and considers what further changes and developments are needed to make this work.

 Comments are invited by 11 January.