Research conducted by insurance company More Than shows that more than a third of drivers can’t recognise the national speed limit sign in a survey of 2000 drivers despite it being one of the most common road signs on British roads.

Last year a staggering 818,000 speeding tickets (2,243 per day) were issued to drivers which resulted in fines, penalty points and an increase in their insurance premiums as well.  The average insurance premium increase for a driver with penalty points for speeding is 13% and the minimum fine is now £100 with 3 penalty points.

For new drivers the news is even worse, because if they pick up 6 points within their first two years of driving then their driving licence is revoked and they are back to learner status.  That is just 2 speeding tickets in 2 years.
But the consequences of speeding are not just financial – 24% of people surveyed admitted to crashing or having a near miss as a result of speeding.
Make sure that you know your road signs by taking advantage of Free Online Theory Tests – just click www.FreeOnlineTheoryTests.co.uk

Call me naive, but I don’t believe most people set out to break the law. So I believe new research revealing that more than 2.5 million UK drivers could be committing fraud by “fronting” is down more to ignorance than villainous intent.

Fronting is getting cheaper insurance by one person taking out the policy while the actual driver is just named on the cover. The practice is financially advantageous when the main driver is experienced, with many years of no-claims discount, while the named driver is the opposite.

It’s undoubtedly done by parents trying to help their children out with the exorbitant insurance youngsters have to pay. The report by Privilege carinsurance adds that 1.5 million drivers are named on the policies of cars they’ve never driven.

I’m sure many people view it as a victimless crime. However, insurers can refuse to pay out on claims if it’s detected, which effectively renders the youngster uninsured. And that can lead to a fine plus six penalty points and an automatic ban for new drivers.

All of a sudden, fronting doesn’t look like such a money saver.

www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/news/10858868/The-risk-of-insurance-fronting.html

Higher penalties for drivers caught using their mobile phone

There are calls for drivers to receive higher penalties when they are caught using their mobile phones after research shows that using a mobile phone can make you more dangerous than a drunk driver.

Research conducted by the Transport Research Laboratory shows that a driver who is drunk has an increased reaction time of 13% whilst someone who is high on cannabis takes 21% longer to react.

Alarmingly, research shows that someone using a hands free kit to make a phone call while driving sees their reaction times increase by 27% while someone sending a text message will take an extra 37% longer to react.

Staggeringly, someone using a hand held telephone will take 47% longer to react while driving.
Most people wouldn’t drive a car when drunk but many people seem to think it is acceptable to use a mobile phone while driving.  Drink driving has been socially unacceptable for decades now, but how long will it take society to get the message that using your mobile phone whilst driving is dangerous?

A survey conducted by Brake and Allianz Insurance shows that 78% of people would support a 20 mph speed limit around schools and in towns, cities and residential areas.

Brake are taking their GO 20 campaign to Parliament by calling on policticians to make the 20 mph limit the standard in built up areas.

Brake claim that the benefits of a 20 mph speed limit would include:

• Lower accident rates – up to 54% fewer accidents in one trial area
• Healthy lifestyles – if more people feel it is safe to walk then this will help to improve health
• Sociable communities – if people are out walking more, they are more likely to get to know other people in their community
• Less pollution – if more people are walking then less journeys are made by car
• Lower costs – with each road death costing the country an estimated £1.7million then each life saved will benefit the economy

Brake’s advice to motorists is to reduce their speed to 20 mph when going through built up areas.  This will give the motorist more time to stop because the stopping distance at 30 mph is 23 metres but this reduces to just 12 metres at 20 mph.  Brake also says that this will mean that the motorist will use less petrol as well as benefiting from reduced wear and tear on the vehicle.

There has been an announcement from the government to say they are now taking extra measures to help cut the cost of running a car, including efforts to reduce whiplash fraud and a freeze on the cost of a vehicle MOT and review of the price of a driving test price.

Also included in the announcement is  a scheme designed to reduce the cost of fuel at motorway service stations, which for many years has been a source of controversy with many motorists who believe they get stung in what is effectively a monopolistic situation.