More than 4,000 uninsured cars have been taken off Bradford’s roads in the last two years, police revealed last night.

Areas of the city have become renowned for high levels of uninsured drivers – one of the factors for the rocketing costs of insurance policies.

Police pledged that operations to target rogue drivers remained a top priority in the Bradford South and Airedale and North Bradford divisions.

An average of more than five vehicles a day have been found to be uninsured on the district’s roads over the last 24 months.

Between last November and October this year a total of 1,848 cars were impounded. The corresponding figure for the previous 12 months was 2,254.

A police spokesman said: “We work with Bradford Council and other agencies to tackle this issue and are continually carrying out both neighbourhood policing and roads policing operations to take uninsured drivers off the roads.

“Through the use of Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) we are able to read the number plate of passing vehicles and check against the national insurance database.

“If the system is triggered the vehicle is stopped, and if no valid insurance is produced the driver can have their vehicle seized, paying hundreds of pounds for the duration of its compound.

“We are committing to driving uninsured drivers off the district’s roads, and plans are already in place for ANPR operations over the coming months to further target those who illegally use vehicles.”

A survey carried out by Bradford East Liberal Democrat MP David Ward earlier this year found many people in Bradford were being given huge quotes to insure their cars, including one at a staggering £50,000 a year. Mr Ward has backed a motion, tabled by the House of Commons influential Transport Select Committee, which expresses concern over mounting insurance costs.

He told the Commons debate last night the system was “crazy” and added: “I was contacted in January by a teenager who was quoted £26,000 for third-party insurance on a 1.1 litre Citroen Saxo.

“When I raised this with a local paper (the Telegraph & Argus) I was contacted by other young people who had received even more ridiculous quotes – one young woman was quoted a figure of £53,000.”

Ending the debate, the chairman of the Transport Select Committee Louise Ellman said: “Insurance premiums are too high. The insurance industry is dysfunctional. The committee will continue its scrutiny.”

MPs agreed the motion without a vote.