The attention of car insurance customers in Northern Ireland and the wider UK is being drawn to the tendency of some employers to put their staff at risk of driving uninsured by encouraging them to use their own vehicles for work, without warning them they need business use cover on their car insurance to do so.

Research reveals that 72 per cent of workers in Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK have used their own wheels for business purposes in the last year, but over a third don't have business use cover on their motor insurance policy.

Gocompare.com also uncovered that only 38 per cent of workers say their boss has discussed the need for business use cover on their car insurance when they take their own vehicle on company business such as travelling to a training course, going to the bank or driving to another office.

"Companies shouldn't assume that workers with private car insurance are covered for driving their vehicle while at work," says the site's Lee Griffin. "Employers have a legal responsibility to ensure that vehicles used on company business are safe to use – this includes being fully insured for business usage."