Cameras that keep uninsured motorists from getting gas?

 Britain is famous for many things: double decker buses, BigBen, the British Royal Family… and an extraordinary network of surveillancecameras. Everywhere. On public street corners, in front of shops, even in someresidential neighborhoods, the British government has cameras installed to makesure every infraction is caught on tape, including those expired registrationtags you forgot about awhile ago. Unfortunately for you, that little memoryrelapse may now prevent you from putting gas in your car, if a new proposalgets approved in the U.K. Forget about filling up that F350 dually you're trucking around England in - your diesel injectors and diesel turbo parts will be running on fumes.

 Installation of cameras at gas stations have specialscanners that record license plates, originally installed to prevent peoplefrom filling up at the pump and speeding away (just making a pay-before-you-pumpsystem as we do here seems to work well, but hey, who are we to judge). Theyare now thinking of using these scanners and linking them to the Driver andVehicle Licensing Agency (their version of the DMV) database to cross referenceplates to valid registration and insurance. No insurance, no gas.

I see what you're doing there.

This is a big problem for the 1.4 million, or 1 in 25,uninsured drivers in the U.K. This would be an even bigger problem for the 1 in7 uninsured motorists we have in the United States – that’s a whopping 27million drivers. You might want to double check your own car insurance policyto make sure uninsured motorists are covered.  If it weren’t for American’s vehementopposition to being watched, I’m sure the DMV would love to implement thissystem here as well – think of the cash rolling in!

There are, of course, two sides to this argument. The first is that the government already has too much control, and they have no business telling people whether they can or can not put gas int their vehicle. On the other hand, car insurance is a legal requirement and by driving without insurance you are breaking the law, and putting everyone around you at risk.

Do you think preventing uninsured motorists from pumping gasis justified or wrong?