CHILDREN as young as 11 have been caught joyriding, according to figures which show a surge in uninsured drivers behind the wheel.
There is no criminal offence for underage driving so police are required to charge child and teenage joyriders with 'driving without insurance' - although they could also be prosecuted for theft and dangerous driving.
In 2014, 991 under-17s were caught driving on UK public roads "without insurance", a rise of 169 - or 21 per cent - over just two years.
The problem is a male-dominated one, with 32 times as many convictions in 2014 of boys as girls - 961 compared to 30.
The youngest child convicted of driving without insurance was an 11-year-old boy, with a 12-year-old girl also convicted.
There were also convictions for 12 boys aged 12 and 27 13-year-old boys, along with one 13-year-old girl.
Among drivers of all ages, the conviction rate for those caught driving without either a valid licence or insurance rose six per cent between 2012 and 2014 to 15,307. I
However, some of the largest rises in convictions for driving without insurance were among male full licence holders aged 65 and over. In this age group, convictions rose 23 per cent from 809 in 2012 to 992 in 2014.
Convictions involving women of the same age group grew 19 per cent from 148 to 176 cases.
The oldest man holding a full licence and convicted of driving with no insurance in 2014 was aged 94, while the two oldest women were aged 88.
Mark Godfrey, insurance director at the RAC, who obtained the figures under freedom of information, said: “In trying to discover how many people have been convicted of driving without insurance, we found there is a shocking number of children who are caught driving before they’re even old enough to apply for a provisional licence, let alone have proper instruction.
“Sadly, we may have little choice but to accept there will always be a minority of young males who will be prepared to drive without a licence or insurance. The fact that the number convicted has remained so high suggests a greater focus is needed to work with this group, so they understand better the risks and potential consequences of their actions.
“It also continues to be the case that men, and indeed boys, are far more likely to be convicted of driving without insurance than women or girls.
“But what is especially worrying is that these figures are really only the tip of the iceberg as the insurance industry estimates there are in the region of one million uninsured drivers on the road."
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