Almost nine in 10 motorists would not tell their employer if they received points on their licence, potentially invalidating insurance and contravening risk management policies, a survey has found.

RAC Insurance research found just 13% of drivers surveyed would plan on informing their employer if they received points in the future.

It also found that nearly a fifth (18%) of motorists would not tell their insurer if their licence was endorsed, while 25% of those that already had penalty points did not inform any organisation when they received them.

Mark Godfrey, director of RAC Insurance, said: “Our research points to one of two likely scenarios: either motorists are simply forgetting to inform the relevant authorities when they receive points, or they are intentionally not telling them in order to keep their insurance premium lower.

“In either case, the result is hundreds of thousands of drivers on our roads who are effectively uninsured by default.

"This could have very serious, and indeed costly implications should they be involved in an accident, and could cause no end of problems should they need to make an insurance claim themselves.”

The DVLA, which holds data on each motorist’s penalty points, launched a joint initiative called MyLicence with the Motor Insurers' Bureau in late 2014, to combat fraud.

This gives insurers automatic access to the last five years of a motorist’s driving history, including points, if a motorist provides their driving licence number.

However, the system is a voluntary one and not all insurers will insist on a driving licence number being provided, so in many circumstances a motorist can just choose to declare points and convictions when applying for an insurance policy.