Top Gear’s James May in Court Over Uninsured Vintage Motorbike, and Crazy Motor Law

Former Top Gear host, James May, is one of the last people you'd expect to be called to court by the UK's Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA). The automotive TV host's nickname is, after all, 'Captain Slow.' However, May was recently seen cycling to court, although not for something as mundane as speeding. 

The 63-year-old arrived at Lavender Hill Magistrates’ Court [Ed. note: Which is strangely not located inside a Pokemon game.jj] by bike last Thursday morning, where he was charged with keeping a motorcycle that did not meet insurance requirements.

May was due to stand trial after being prosecuted by the DVLA over the allegation relating to his 50-year-old orange Suzuki motorcycle. Specifically, the charge states that on July 17 2025, May apparently kept a Suzuki GT750, which didn't meet insurance requirements.

If you're like me, you're probably wondering why you could be charged with simply owning a motorcycle that's not insured. I mean, May wasn't charged with actually riding it without insurance. But in the UK, having a vehicle that's registered in your name but not insured is illegal, unless it's declared SORN (Statutory Off-Road Notification). May could've insured the GT750, but because it didn't have an active insurance policy on the DVLA database while it was registered to him, he was charged.

In the end, the Grand Tour star did not appear before magistrates and settled the case outside of court, prosecutors told reporters. May didn't comment on the reason behind not having the motorcycle insured, nor the reason that it wasn't declared SORN, but I'd hazard a guess that it has something to do with owning a double-digit number of vehicles and simply having one slip your mind. 

The name of the law May was breaking is called the Continuous Insurance Enforcement (CIE), and it was only implemented through the Motor Vehicles Regulations in 2011. The reasoning behind the law is that the police estimated that 1.4 million motorists were driving without insurance, which was adding around £30 ($40)per year to every motorist's insurance premium. Police argued that the only way to catch motorists driving without insurance was via traffic stops. Now people are getting fined without ever leaving their garages, which doesn't sit right with me, but I'd like to hear what you think.