I added my son-in-law's father to my insurance a couple of years ago so that he could drive my car while visiting the UK. My insurance company took down his details from me over the phone and did not require physical sight of his licence.
Might be worth asking the person wanting to be insured for a photocopy of his/her licence to send to the insurance company for verification.
Nich.
Nicholas John Peter Tinker - # 484
Manufactured on Tuesday 27th April 2004 @ 12.17.47.
Commission Number: 24468.
Brochure Model: M3 Tourer 4.6 V8 260PS.
Specification Code: L01B.
CICode: D1511.
Trim Level: TL8.9 (M3).
65th ZT-T 260SE to be made out of 115.
11th ZT-T 260 SE in Pearl Black (PBT) out of 23 produced. Manufactured in the UK by MG Rover Group Ltd.