I don't think you've told us the full story here but I'll humour you.

My point is that you said...

...which is quite frankly horseshit.

The British Police tend to be quite amicable if you know how to deal with them. Thank you for informing me that the Gestapo and Stasi are no longer in existence. I'll let you know if I need a history lesson.

My second point is that 3rd party insurance is compulsory in the UK, as is a valid licence. I'm just about to pay out £400 UK pounds for insurance on my 12 year old Alfa Romeo. I have a clean licence, no penalty points and no criminal records. My insurance as well the insurance payments of every other law abiding driver in the UK is going up every year to cover the payouts to individuals and families affected by incidents involving uninsured drivers. I've paid for the right to have an opinion on this so don't lecture me or anyone else about how things should be in a country you don't even live in.

I'm in full agreement with Tony P. Your mate is a muppet. He either didn't do his research before travelling or chose to deliberately ignore the legal requirements of the countries he was travelling through. I suspect it is the latter so I have no sympathy at all for him. And while on the subject, insurers take a very dim view of anyone prosecuted for driving uninsured. If the police do take action, it will be very unlikely he'll be able to get cover so he's effectively lost his car.