Rebel Wilson prosecuted over insurance lapse while awaiting birth of child
Hollywood film star Rebel Wilson is being prosecuted in the UK for failing to insure a £50,000 Audi while in the United States waiting for her second child to be born.
The Australian actress and comedian, 46, spent five months in Los Angeles while her wife, fashion designer Ramona Agruma, was in the latter stages of pregnancy.
While the couple were away from their London home, the insurance ran out on her Audi SUV.
Wilson has now been charged with a criminal offence over the lapse, in a prosecution brought by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA).
Court papers obtained by the Press Association show the actress has pleaded not guilty, and wrote in to apologise for the mistake.
She explained that her wife experienced complications while carrying their second child, meaning the couple could not return to London from LA until after the baby was born in May.
She wrote: “We returned home with the new baby on May 28 2026, and were driven in a taxi home.
“During this entire time, the vehicle was not used at all and was not kept on the road.
“It was kept in a private underground garage at our address and not driven at all.
“Upon our return to London, when I opened the mail, I realized that the insurance for this car had not been purchased.
“So before we used the car, I made sure to go online and get the appropriate insurance under my wife’s name.
“Only once that insurance was paid for was the car driven.
“Please accept our sincerest apologies, we are not UK residents and I was unaware of the requirement to keep a car insured.
“I believed because we were overseas and because the car was not at all in use or parked on the road, that it was OK for the car insurance to temporarily lapse.”
Sydney-born Wilson, who launched her Hollywood career with a role in 2010 smash-hit film Bridesmaids, is charged with keeping a motor vehicle which does not meet insurance requirements.
Her case was first dealt with in the Single Justice Procedure last week, when it was referred to an open court hearing at Highbury Corner Magistrates Court on November 30.
Wilson, who had starring roles in the Pitch Perfect series, the musical Cats, and comedies such as Bride Hard and The Hustle, could be asked to attend the court hearing.
According to court documents, the DVLA alleges her Audi Q5 was uninsured on May 26, and it wrote to the actress at her £3.5 million apartment in Whitehall, central London, to offer her the chance to pay a fixed penalty fine.
The agency said Wilson did not respond to the offer, and it then opted to bring a criminal prosecution.
Wilson and Agruma announced their relationship in June 2022 and married in Italy two years later. They announced the birth of their second child, a daughter, on May 4.
Published: by Radio NewsHub