- Car envy
- Councils’ controlled parking issues
- En-suite parking space
- Leaving a warm car on cold days
- Swapping pompoms for podiums
- When more spaces mean less space
- Speeding motorists becoming rarer
- Unlucky registration plates
- Distracted driving during the summer
- Gone driving
- June 2009
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OTHER INSURANCE SITES
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Monday, August 20, 2012
Unlucky registration plates
Superstitious drivers who are looking to purchase a new car soon are apparently getting a little worried because registration plate numbers are going to change on March the 1st 2013. Registration plates change twice every year – once in March and again in September – so that the age of a car can be narrowed down to a six month period.
This doesn’t usually cause any problems, but this time it’s different. This time, when the plates change in March, the number 13 will feature on registrations.
Yes, unlucky number 13 – the number which some drivers feel might cause them to be involved in a traffic accident, breakdown in the middle of nowhere, or not be able to find cheap car insurance.
Apparently the DVLA, probably aware that car sales may suffer due to this digit, are allowing motorists to continue having the 62-plate which will be available at the beginning of next month.
However, these will be treated like personalised registration plates, and so drivers will have to pay for them.
Still – if you’re superstitious enough – having to pay for a safe number plate might actually reduce your risk of suffering an accident, as driving around thinking that you’re going to crash might actually lead to you being involved in a collision.
Photo © Like_The_Grand_Canyon via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence
Labels: 13, accident, car, cheap car insurance, collision, driver, driving, DVLA, March, number, plate, registration, September, superstitious, traffic, unlucky
Friday, August 17, 2012
Distracted driving during the summer
Have you ever been tooted at because you’re wearing a pretty skirt?
I know that, depending on my mood, it either makes me smile or makes me grumble about sexism and so on.
From now on though, as well as smiling or grumbling, I’ll also be thinking about a set of statistics I read recently.
A poll of 2,142 motorists, conducted by a car insurance company, showed that 60% of male drivers and 12% of female drivers had become distracted by pedestrians during the summer.
Why during the summer? Well it’s the extra skin on show which does it apparently, and even models on billboards can cause some road users to take their eyes off the road.
This is worrying, because a large proportion of traffic accidents involve some type of distracted driving.
Still, I’m not going to let this stop me from enjoying the summer months and wearing all those nice clothes I enjoy prancing around in when it’s warm enough for me to do so.
Drivers just need to have a little more self-control, that’s all. I mean, it’s not like I’m wearing a bikini! It’s a knee-length skirt for goodness sake!
I know that, depending on my mood, it either makes me smile or makes me grumble about sexism and so on.
From now on though, as well as smiling or grumbling, I’ll also be thinking about a set of statistics I read recently.
A poll of 2,142 motorists, conducted by a car insurance company, showed that 60% of male drivers and 12% of female drivers had become distracted by pedestrians during the summer.
Why during the summer? Well it’s the extra skin on show which does it apparently, and even models on billboards can cause some road users to take their eyes off the road.
This is worrying, because a large proportion of traffic accidents involve some type of distracted driving.
Still, I’m not going to let this stop me from enjoying the summer months and wearing all those nice clothes I enjoy prancing around in when it’s warm enough for me to do so.
Drivers just need to have a little more self-control, that’s all. I mean, it’s not like I’m wearing a bikini! It’s a knee-length skirt for goodness sake!
Photo © ...love Maegan via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence
Labels: accident, car insurance, distracted driving, drivers, motorist, pedestrians, skirt, statistics, summer, traffic
Monday, August 13, 2012
Gone driving
Have you ever gone for a drive, just because you felt like it?
Apparently, according to a survey by a car insurance provider and Populus, a lot of people do.
They polled more than 20,000 motorists, and revealed that 55% of drivers have got behind the wheel and gone for a destinationless spin.
Furthermore, 10% of people do it every week!
It sounds unwise, when you think about how expensive fuel is at the moment…
However, I know how nice it can be to just drive.
Owning a car is like having a room no-one can barge into – it’s relaxing.
In your vehicle you can go where the wind (and importantly the road) takes you. No one can pop in to say that some programme on TV’s just about to start, or to ask you why you haven’t cleaned the dishes yet.
Of course, it’s very important not to get too carried away. The road is no place for dangerous or distracted drivers! So, if you fancy going for a drive, make sure you’re not doing it in an emotional state – otherwise you could suffer a traffic accident.
Apparently, according to a survey by a car insurance provider and Populus, a lot of people do.
They polled more than 20,000 motorists, and revealed that 55% of drivers have got behind the wheel and gone for a destinationless spin.
Furthermore, 10% of people do it every week!
It sounds unwise, when you think about how expensive fuel is at the moment…
However, I know how nice it can be to just drive.
Owning a car is like having a room no-one can barge into – it’s relaxing.
In your vehicle you can go where the wind (and importantly the road) takes you. No one can pop in to say that some programme on TV’s just about to start, or to ask you why you haven’t cleaned the dishes yet.
Of course, it’s very important not to get too carried away. The road is no place for dangerous or distracted drivers! So, if you fancy going for a drive, make sure you’re not doing it in an emotional state – otherwise you could suffer a traffic accident.
Photo © allison.hare via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence
Labels: accident, car insurance, destination, distracted drivers, drive, drivers, fuel, motorists, Populus, road, traffic, wheel
Monday, June 25, 2012
Police left reeling by blonde bombshell
Women drivers are, in statistical terms, safer drivers than their male counterparts. Not only are we less prone to serious accidents, we’re also far more likely to keep within the speed limit.
It seems we may also be the most creative when it comes to looking for excuses as well. Well, this is certainly the case if a recent Canadian example is anything to go by.
Last weekend police in the Canadian city of Edmonton pulled over a woman driver who’d been travelling at an incredibly dangerous 114 km/hr in a 50km zone.
Out she stepped of her Lexus incandescent with feelings of persecution. Her reason for feeling so persecuted? Because the police officers had targeted her for being blonde – well, obviously!
“You couldn’t make this up, people would never believe it,” said one of the officers.
“If the officer was targeting blondes, and he had the ability to determine blonde, brunette and redhead at 114 km/h, he deserves a commendation – a hairdressing commendation.”
And for her trouble, the woman has now been fined and had her vehicle impounded for a week.
Perhaps she’s learned her lesson. Then again, perhaps she’s just gone brunette.
It seems we may also be the most creative when it comes to looking for excuses as well. Well, this is certainly the case if a recent Canadian example is anything to go by.Last weekend police in the Canadian city of Edmonton pulled over a woman driver who’d been travelling at an incredibly dangerous 114 km/hr in a 50km zone.
Out she stepped of her Lexus incandescent with feelings of persecution. Her reason for feeling so persecuted? Because the police officers had targeted her for being blonde – well, obviously!
“You couldn’t make this up, people would never believe it,” said one of the officers.
“If the officer was targeting blondes, and he had the ability to determine blonde, brunette and redhead at 114 km/h, he deserves a commendation – a hairdressing commendation.”
And for her trouble, the woman has now been fined and had her vehicle impounded for a week.
Perhaps she’s learned her lesson. Then again, perhaps she’s just gone brunette.
Photo © gagilas via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence
Labels: accident, Lexus, police, speed limit, vehicle, woman drivers
Friday, February 24, 2012
Big car and small spaces
It’s irritating enough going from shop to shop and feeling penalised when trousers that are labelled as being the same size fit in one shop but are too small for you in another.
Well, now there’s a similar problem being suffered by motorists parking in spaces provided by councils.
Fines are being issued to drivers who have parked their car in a bay that is too narrow or too short to fit their vehicle in correctly.
Now, this is all for the good of the road network, since cars overlapping onto the road could cause an accident, but there are two problems.
One – cars are reportedly 16% wider than they were four decades ago.
And two – different councils have different views of what being too big for a parking space entails.
Some councils feel that if the entire car is not within the markings, then it is too big, others feel that as long as the vehicle’s wheels are within the lines, all is well.
Until they all decide on one all-encompassing set of rules, motorists will remain confused and keep getting fines they thought they were safe from.
Very annoying. Now please excuse me – I need to drive into town to exchange these tiny trousers. Grrrr.
Well, now there’s a similar problem being suffered by motorists parking in spaces provided by councils. Fines are being issued to drivers who have parked their car in a bay that is too narrow or too short to fit their vehicle in correctly.
Now, this is all for the good of the road network, since cars overlapping onto the road could cause an accident, but there are two problems.
One – cars are reportedly 16% wider than they were four decades ago.
And two – different councils have different views of what being too big for a parking space entails.
Some councils feel that if the entire car is not within the markings, then it is too big, others feel that as long as the vehicle’s wheels are within the lines, all is well.
Until they all decide on one all-encompassing set of rules, motorists will remain confused and keep getting fines they thought they were safe from.
Very annoying. Now please excuse me – I need to drive into town to exchange these tiny trousers. Grrrr.
Photo © paulswansen via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence
Labels: accident, bay, car, council, drive, driver, fine, motorists, narrow, parked, parking, road network, safe, short, size, spaces, vehicle
Friday, December 2, 2011
Using your loaf in a crash
A few weeks ago we told you how you could save money on lunch by making an appetising toast sandwich (which we’re sure you all tried to great success).
This week we bring you the latest in car crash injury prevention technology – a loaf of bread.
One woman driver was lucky enough to have just been shopping when she suffered an accident after aquaplaning into a telegraph pole which flipped her car upside down.
Yes, we know this doesn’t sound very lucky at the moment.
The lucky part is that a loaf of bread she had in a shopping bag in the back seat flew forward and landed between her head and the roof of the car, so that her head was supported and cushioned until emergency crews managed to get her out.
She states, “For some reason, the airbags didn’t inflate so the loaf was the only cushion I had. It saved my life.
“I was trapped for almost an hour. During that time the loaf remained as a cushion and support for my head as I was upside-down.”
We think it’s important to add though, that although this woman was saved by her shopping, you should really put loose objects in the car boot or securely fix them down before beginning a journey. If you don’t, then an item could hit you if you brake sharply for any reason.
This week we bring you the latest in car crash injury prevention technology – a loaf of bread.One woman driver was lucky enough to have just been shopping when she suffered an accident after aquaplaning into a telegraph pole which flipped her car upside down.
Yes, we know this doesn’t sound very lucky at the moment.
The lucky part is that a loaf of bread she had in a shopping bag in the back seat flew forward and landed between her head and the roof of the car, so that her head was supported and cushioned until emergency crews managed to get her out.
She states, “For some reason, the airbags didn’t inflate so the loaf was the only cushion I had. It saved my life.
“I was trapped for almost an hour. During that time the loaf remained as a cushion and support for my head as I was upside-down.”
We think it’s important to add though, that although this woman was saved by her shopping, you should really put loose objects in the car boot or securely fix them down before beginning a journey. If you don’t, then an item could hit you if you brake sharply for any reason.
Photo © sk8geek via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence
Labels: accident, aquaplaning, bread, car crash, emergency crews, injury prevention, loaf, shopping, telegraph pole, woman driver
Thursday, May 19, 2011
It’s 30mph for a reason
A recent joke by pranksters in Bradford has left motorists and road authorities very angry, and could have lead to a serious accident.
A fake 40mph sign was put in a 30mph zone, just before a speed camera, so, some unfortunate motorists, thinking that they were entering a 40 zone, sped up and were caught by the machine.
The fake sign was quickly removed.
The pranksters have been labelled by highway chiefs and a member of the Bradford Council as irresponsible, and the joke itself dangerous.
One HGV driver, a resident in the area, commented, “Some evenings it's been like a strobe disco light. There have obviously been a lot of people who have been caught by it.
“Whoever has placed the sign there, it's a stupid thing to do. It costs time and effort for all those involved in the fines process.”
A spokesman for the Council stated, “Whoever put it up may think it was just a practical joke but it is actually crassly irresponsible.
“We lowered the limit to 30mph on Woodside Road because there had been 157 casualties on the A641 over three years. Encouraging people to drive faster than the speed limit may put lives at risk.”
Sadly, some people don’t think about the potential consequences of their actions – if they did there would probably be a greatly reduced number of accidents around the world.
Image by bicameral via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence
A fake 40mph sign was put in a 30mph zone, just before a speed camera, so, some unfortunate motorists, thinking that they were entering a 40 zone, sped up and were caught by the machine.
The fake sign was quickly removed. The pranksters have been labelled by highway chiefs and a member of the Bradford Council as irresponsible, and the joke itself dangerous.
One HGV driver, a resident in the area, commented, “Some evenings it's been like a strobe disco light. There have obviously been a lot of people who have been caught by it.
“Whoever has placed the sign there, it's a stupid thing to do. It costs time and effort for all those involved in the fines process.”
A spokesman for the Council stated, “Whoever put it up may think it was just a practical joke but it is actually crassly irresponsible.
“We lowered the limit to 30mph on Woodside Road because there had been 157 casualties on the A641 over three years. Encouraging people to drive faster than the speed limit may put lives at risk.”
Sadly, some people don’t think about the potential consequences of their actions – if they did there would probably be a greatly reduced number of accidents around the world.
Image by bicameral via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence
Labels: accident, driver, highway, motorists, speed camera