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Police forces across the country will be given real-time access to the Motor Insurance Database by the end of the year.

It comes as the Motor Insurers' Bureau (MIB) steps up its campaign, encouraging commercial vehicle owners to check policy details on the database.

The MIB piloted the police helpline in 2006 in conjunction with the Metropolitan, South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire and Merseyside police.

Ashton West, chief executive of the MIB, told Insurance Times the scheme was so "incredibly successful" that it would be rolled out.

"We were taking between 300 and 400 calls a week from the police," West said. "In total 42,000 vehicles were seized last year, of which 40% of the cars ended up being seized or destroyed."

A further four forces have signed up to the scheme, including Gloucestershire and Lincolnshire.

A marketing campaign targeting commercial vehicle owners will be launched in May.

"The message we are trying to get out is that it is no longer sufficient for people to know they are insured," West said.

"They have to know that the database is right otherwise they could end up having their cars confiscated by the police who are using the database."

The MIB released figures earlier this year which indicate that the number of uninsured vehicles on the road is falling for the first time.

Yet West conceded it would be 2010 before motorists feel the financial benefit of the database in their premiums.

"The levy growth won't stop until 2010," West said. "We will be able to reduce the increase over the next three years."

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