MS90 · CAR INSURANCE
MS90 and car insurance: what to declare and when
MS90 carries six points and normally remains on the driving record for four years from the offence. For an adult, the rehabilitation period for a driving endorsement is five years from conviction. Those periods do different jobs, which is why an MS90 can still be relevant after it has disappeared from the driving record.
Checked against primary legal sources for England and Wales · Updated 27 August 2026 · How we review content
Answer the insurer’s actual question accurately. Check the offence date, conviction date and current driving record. Do not assume that removal from the DVLA record at four years means every disclosure question has ended. If the question is unclear, ask the insurer to clarify it in writing.
Check six points in the context of the whole record
Use the points checker to map the endorsements you already know about. It cannot confirm insurance terms or replace the official record.
Check the record before applying or renewing
- View and save your current driving record on GOV.UK.
- Record the exact offence date and conviction date because the four-year and five-year periods run from different dates.
- Read the precise conviction question and the period it covers before answering.
- Check the policy wording for any duty to notify convictions during the policy term.
- If the conviction was previously unknown, record when you discovered the proceedings and check the urgent court route.
Why can MS90 affect car insurance?
MS90 is the endorsement code for failure to give information as to the identity of a driver and it carries six points. Insurers decide for themselves whether and on what terms they will offer cover. There is no official or market-wide MS90 premium increase, so a percentage quoted without a stated dataset should not be treated as a rule.
The reliable starting point is the information the insurer requests: the code, offence date, conviction date, points and any disqualification. The official record and the insurer’s wording are safer than memory or an online premium estimate.
What must I declare to an insurer?
For consumer insurance, the Consumer Insurance (Disclosure and Representations) Act 2012 requires a consumer to take reasonable care not to make a misrepresentation. In practical terms, answer the insurer’s questions honestly and carefully. The Act replaced the former general duty to volunteer every material fact with a duty centred on the representations the consumer makes.
At application or renewal, read the question and its date range. During the policy, check whether the contract requires notification of a new conviction before renewal. There is no safe universal answer for mid-policy notification because policy terms differ.
Why are four years and five years both relevant?
MS90 is within the miscellaneous endorsement codes that normally stay on a driving record for four years from the date of the offence. That is the DVLA record period.
For an adult, GOV.UK gives a five-year rehabilitation period from the date of conviction for a driving endorsement. That is a different legal period. An endorsement can therefore disappear from the driving record before the conviction becomes spent. Answer the question actually asked and take advice if its treatment of spent convictions is unclear.
The dates may not be close together because the offence and conviction occur at different stages. Check both rather than counting five years from the date the points disappear.
Check what the MS90 code records and when it leaves the driving record →
What if an insurance answer was wrong?
A wrong answer does not produce one automatic remedy. Under the 2012 Act, the insurer must first establish a qualifying misrepresentation and the available remedy depends on whether it was careless or deliberate or reckless.
For a careless misrepresentation, the remedy reflects what the insurer would have done with the correct information. Depending on its underwriting evidence, that can involve different terms, a proportionate reduction in a claim, or avoidance with the premium returned if it would not have entered the contract at all.
For a deliberate or reckless misrepresentation, the insurer may avoid the contract, refuse claims and need not return premiums, except to the extent that keeping them would be unfair. If a policy or claim is threatened, obtain the insurer’s reasons and underwriting evidence in writing before deciding how to respond.
What if I discovered the MS90 through an insurance check?
An insurer query or unexpectedly changed quote may be the first sign of a conviction entered in proceedings you did not know about. The insurance issue then sits alongside an urgent court issue.
Record exactly when and how you first learned about the proceedings. The ordinary statutory declaration period is 21 days from learning of the case. Do not describe the conviction as removed or overturned unless the court has accepted the relevant procedure and the driving record has actually been updated.
Independent information, not an insurance referral
NoticeReady is not paid by any insurer or broker. This page contains no affiliate links, sponsored placements or insurer recommendations. NoticeReady does not introduce readers to insurers or receive anything if a policy is purchased.
When is urgent advice sensible?
Obtain regulated advice promptly if an insurer proposes to avoid or cancel a policy, refuses a claim, alleges deliberate or reckless misrepresentation, or if the MS90 was imposed in proceedings you did not know about. Advice is also sensible where six points create new-driver revocation or a possible totting-up disqualification.
Turn your paperwork into a clear next-step checklist.
Prepare the court papers you actually have
Build a court-stage chronology, evidence checklist, hearing preparation record and concise solicitor briefing in NoticeReady Case. It does not choose a plea or predict the outcome.
QUICK ANSWERS
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to tell an insurer about an MS90?
Answer the insurer’s questions accurately for the period and information they request. Check separately whether the policy requires notification during its term.
How much does MS90 increase car insurance?
There is no official or market-wide percentage. Pricing and acceptance depend on the insurer and the driver’s full risk information, so unsupported percentage estimates should not be treated as a rule.
Does MS90 leave the driving record after four years?
MS90 normally remains on the driving record for four years from the date of the offence. That is separate from the adult rehabilitation period for a driving endorsement, which GOV.UK states is five years from conviction.
What happens if I failed to disclose MS90?
The result is not automatically policy avoidance. Under the 2012 Act, the insurer must establish a qualifying misrepresentation and the remedy depends on whether it was careless or deliberate or reckless and what the insurer would otherwise have done.
What if I did not know about the MS90 conviction?
Record when you first learned of the proceedings, obtain the court record and act promptly. A statutory declaration route may be available and the ordinary period is 21 days from discovery of the case.