According to a recent report from the French Victims’ Guarantee Fund (Fonds de garantie des assurances obligatoires de dommages - FGAO), nearly 7,500 people were compensated in France last year after being injured or killed in road accidents caused by uninsured or unidentified drivers.
The total number of victims fell by 7.3% compared with 2024, but the number of deaths increased. In 2025, 177 people died in accidents involving an uninsured driver, compared to 169 in 2024.
In France, every motor vehicle must be covered at least by third-party liability insurance, known as assurance responsabilité civile. It pays for injury and damage caused to others but does not necessarily cover damage to the uninsured driver’s own vehicle. However, according to government figures, there are around 700,000 uninsured drivers on the roads. Police statistics also show that nearly 6% of accidents requiring police attention were uninsured.
When a driver causes an accident without insurance, or cannot be identified after a hit-and-run, the victims are not left without compensation. They may be paid by the FGAO, a public-interest compensation body.
The FGAO has operated since 1951. It is financed in part by the insurance sector and, indirectly, by insured motorists. In 2025, it paid €132 million in compensation to victims of road accidents involving uninsured or unidentified drivers. That figure has been broadly stable in recent years, though the composition of claims is shifting, with a growing share arising from smaller vehicles, including electric scooters, rather than cars.
The fund seeks to recover the money from the person responsible for the accident.
For a driver who has chosen not to insure a vehicle the standard fixed fine for driving without insurance is €750. In practice, however, a driver caught without insurance may also face vehicle confiscation, licence suspension, and in more serious cases criminal prosecution carrying a fine of up to €3,750.
Where an uninsured driver causes serious injury, permanent disability or death the FGAO can pursue the responsible driver for the full compensation paid to victims. Individual claims can run to hundreds of thousands of euros, and in the most serious cases to several million.
The fund has warned that many uninsured drivers are under 30 years of age and have limited financial resources. A decision made to save money on insurance premiums can therefore result in a long-term debt that is impossible to clear quickly.
Rural Transport
In many parts of rural France, public transport is limited and a vehicle is necessary to reach employment, training, healthcare, shops and social activities. Young drivers may face high premiums because of their age, lack of driving history or the type of vehicle they own.
France has increased its ability to detect non-insurance before an accident happens. The authorities can consult the national insured-vehicle database, known as the Fichier des véhicules assurés, in certain enforcement situations. In particular, it may be checked automatically following a speeding offence of more than 50 km/h above the limit.
Electric Scooters
The FGAO's figures also show how the problem is changing, with the growing role of electric scooters (trottinettes électriques) in uninsured accidents.
In 2025, the FGAO compensated 818 people injured by uninsured electric scooters, an increase of almost 8% in one year. According to the fund, uninsured electric scooters now account for more victim claims than uninsured powered two-wheelers such as motorcycles and mopeds.
Privately owned electric scooters are treated in France as motorised personal transport devices. They must be insured for third-party liability, even if they are used only for short journeys.
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