Second key Vnuk EU insurance vote goes in favour of motorsport

The 2014 Vnuk court case set a precedent that all vehicles on private land - from lawnmowers to cars - must be insured.

That would mean that all cars taking part in races in the European Union would need insurance, even on private land, and could lead to on-track crashes requiring the involvement of the police and being treated similarly to road traffic collisions.

A key vote was won last month, when the internal market committee decided to exclude motorsport from the wording of the new Motor Insurance Directive - a document that acts as a guideline for EU member states to create their laws on vehicle insurance.

MEPs then voted on Wednesday and the European Parliament backed the amendment to exclude motorsport.

Conservative MEP Dan Dalton, the son of a club motorsport volunteer, operates in the internal market committee and has been key in pushing through these changes.

"I am delighted that MEPs have agreed to exempt Motorsport from the EU's new motor insurance rules," said Dalton.

"This vaguely worded proposal was totally unnecessary and has left teams, drivers and fans in the dark for months.

"I hope EU governments and the European Commission will stick with what we have agreed in the European Parliament, which is a victory for common sense regulation."

Now the process goes into a phase called trilogies, where the MEP responsible for the law will then negotiate the exact wording of the text with the EU governments and the European Commission.

It is hoped this will be done well before May, when EU elections take place. If it does not pass before then, it could be forced back to the start of the voting process.