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Andrew Adams reportingYou'd better think twice before driving without insurance. Police are taking advantage of a new law that allows them to impound your vehicle.
Before, there were hefty fines: $400 for a first offense and $1,000 after that. Now if officers pull over a driver and discover the vehicle is uninsured, they can have it taken to the impound lot.
Utah Highway Patrol(UHP) Trooper Cameron Roden says it's a good incentive. "The fines that go with it hopefully will help them to realized they need insurance. We have quite a few crashes out there that we investigate that [involve] people that just don't have insurance."
The law went into effect May 5, and it looks like it's already paying dividends. The UHP says it pulled over a motorist shortly after the law was passed. The trooper found the driver already had two DUIs and couldn't get insurance.
The measure's sponsor on Utah's Capitol Hill tells the Standard-Examiner he hopes this ends up being about safety and not harassment.
E-mail: aadams@ksl.com
