Insurance status is the one vehicle fact that is both legally required and only partly public. The Motor Insurance Database is the industry register that police and enforcement systems read, and it has a free public front end that will tell you whether a vehicle appears on it. What it will not do is show you the policy, the insurer or the cover, unless you have a reason the system recognises.
The free lookup, and its two versions
The public askMID enquiry takes a registration and tells you whether the vehicle is on the database. There is a separate route for a vehicle you are the keeper of, which returns more detail about your own cover, and a further route used after an accident where you can obtain insurer details for a vehicle involved, on the basis that you have a claim to pursue. The three answer progressively more, and the one that is open to anybody answers only presence or absence.
Why a car can be insured and not appear
Records reach the database from insurers rather than instantly from the point of sale, so a policy taken out in the last few days can be genuinely in force and not yet visible. Trade policies, some fleet arrangements and cover that is written on the driver rather than the vehicle can also show differently from what you expect. An absent record is a reason to ask a question, and it is not by itself proof that a vehicle is uninsured.
Continuous insurance enforcement, and what it means for a buyer
A registered vehicle in Great Britain must be insured continuously unless a SORN is in force, and the enforcement system compares the insurance database against the DVLA record automatically. For a buyer this is useful background: a car that has been sitting untaxed and uninsured on a driveway should have a SORN, and if it does not, the keeper has a problem that is about to become paperwork. Ask, because it tells you how the car has been looked after.
After a collision
If someone hits your car and you have their registration, the accident route on askMID is the mechanism for obtaining their insurer's details so you can make a claim. Take the registration, photograph the scene and the damage, note the time and place, and get details of any witness. If the driver leaves without exchanging details, report it to the police first, because the criminal route and the civil route to the keeper's identity are different and the police one is faster.
Questions people ask about how to check a car is insured
Can I see who insures a car from its number plate?
Not through the public lookup, which reports only whether the vehicle is on the database. Insurer details are released through the accident enquiry route, to somebody with a claim to pursue.
Is the askMID check free?
The public enquiry for whether a vehicle is on the database is free. Some of the other routes, including obtaining insurer details after an accident, may carry a charge.
My car is insured but does not show. What now?
Contact your insurer or broker and ask them to check the entry. Records are supplied by insurers, and a recent policy or a mid term change can take days to appear.
Does a SORN vehicle need insurance?
A vehicle with a SORN in force and kept off the public road is outside the continuous insurance requirement. The moment it returns to the road it needs both tax and insurance.