AN average of more than 1,000 vehicles are seized from uninsured or unlicensed drivers in Suffolk each year, it emerged today.

According to the county’s constabulary nearly 8,400 vehicles have been confiscated over the past seven years.

A spokesman for Suffolk police said 8,377 illegally driven cars, vans, and motorbikes have been taken away from their owners between 2005 and June 30, 2012.

The figures were revealed after police yesterday seized the one millionth uninsured car to be caught in a national crackdown that began in 2005.

The milestone was revealed by the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB.

Since police were given powers to stop vehicles identified as being driven without insurance, an average of 500 vehicles have been seized each day. Of those, an estimated 30 per cent are crushed.

The one million milestone was welcomed by the AA which said it underlined the progress being made by police and the MIB in the fight against uninsured drivers.

AA Insurance director Simon Douglas said: “A million cars seized is great news, yet there are still an estimated 1.2 million vehicles on Britain’s roads being driven without cover. That’s around one out of every 25.

“The MIB, which provides compensation to innocent victims involved in collisions with uninsured drivers and drivers who fail to stop, is doing great work with the police and community leaders to get through to persistent offenders.

“But we are still a long way from cleaning up Britain’s roads.”

Police identify them with automatic number plate recognition technology which compares registration numbers against data provided by the motor insurance database operated by the MIB.