Council Directive 72/166/EEC (O.J. No. L103, 2.5.72, p. 2), as modified by Council Directives 84/5/EEC (O.J. No. L8, 11.1.84, p. 17) and 90/232/EEC (O.J. No. L129, 19.5.90, p. 33) requires a Member State to take all appropriate measures to ensure that civil liability in respect of the use of motor vehicles normally based in its territory is covered by insurance.

Under Article 90 of the Road Traffic (Northern Ireland) Order 1981 (“the 1981 Order”) it is an offence to use, or to cause or permit someone to use, a motor vehicle on a road unless its use is covered by an appropriate policy of insurance or security (“the insurance requirement”). “Road” is defined in Article 2(2) of the 1981 Order, as including a public road and any street, carriageway, highway or roadway to which the public has access.

For the purpose of complying with the directives these Regulations amend the 1981 Order by extending the insurance requirements to the use of vehicles in public places other than roads and by making provision for the production of insurance document etc. where an accident occurs in a public place.