Gardaí from the Roads Policing Unit in Co. Roscommon stopped a 15-year-old tractor driver in Elphin yesterday afternoon (Sunday, January 12).

The driver was found to have no licence and was stopped after a call from a member of the public. The tractor was also found to have no insurance or tax.

The category W (work vehicles and tractors) licence is required to drive a tractor in Ireland, with the minimum age in this category at 16.

Offences for driving without insurance are prosecuted in court and can result in five penalty points on conviction, according to the Road Safety Authority (RSA).

Failure to display an insurance disk carries an initial fixed charge of €60 (rising to €90 after 28 days).

Is also an offence to drive a vehicle that is not taxed and it is an offence to drive without displaying a current tax disc. Gardaí have the power to impound your vehicle if you drive without tax or insurance.

Gardaí were also on patrol nationwide during the icy weather throughout last week, and reported 375 drivers speeding across three days from Tuesday, January 7 until Thursday, January 9.

The reports included one driver clocked travelling 99km/h in a 50km/h zone on the Dublin Road on the outskirts of Galway City, despite what gardaí described as "extremely dangerous" road conditions.

On social media, gardaí stated: "This disregard for road safety is both dangerous and irresponsible, not just for your own wellbeing, but for that of the many workers who are busy keeping our roads open for essential use during this really cold spell."

Meanwhile, gardaí recently stopped a 16-year-old in Co. Cork, with the vehicle's tax expired by 2,919 days.

A post on the An Garda Síochána Cork Facebook page outlined that the Cork County Road Policing Unit based in Bandon, Co. Cork stopped the tractor.

“The 16-year-old driver was on a road trip,” the post outlined and it reminded farmers that “the annual agricultural tractor motor tax rate is €102/year.”