Driving under the influence of both legal and illegal drugs is an issue that is growing on all measures in the UK - collisions and casualties have gone up by over 260 per cent over the last ten years, and convictions are now at over 12,000 a year. The impact is devastating, far-reaching, and only getting worse, said IAM RoadSmart. This issue was brought to the government’s attention in 2011 … [Read more...]
Newslines 10 March
There are over 4.55M drivers with points on their licences, figures from the DVLA have revealed to the Scrap Car Comparison company. Broken down they show about 3.55M drivers were penalised for speeding, usually on main and secondary roads, and many of these were in the south east of England, followed by London and then the North West, but Wales is not in the top ten offending areas. The new … [Read more...]
More drivers missing vehicle tax payments
There has been a worrying increase in the number of drivers having their vehicle tax Direct Debits cancelled by DVLA after payments couldn’t be taken due to a lack of funds, figures analysed by the RAC show following a Freedom of Information request. Almost one million drivers (950,377) had their Direct Debits cancelled in the financial year 2021-22, an increase of 9% on the 862,529 on 2020-21. … [Read more...]
Tradelines 8 February: Swansea drivers are best
Swansea is home to the UK’s best drivers, with just 1.5 casualties per 10,000 people, according to analysis of Government data. Moneybarn crunched the statistics and also found there were just 2.57 speeding offences per 10,000 people in Wales second city. Ford is mulling over how many car segments it needs to be competing in as it looks for bigger profits in Europe, CEO Jim Farley said on the … [Read more...]
New laws coming to watch out for
Used car buying service ChooseMyCar.com has compiled a list of the new driving-related legalities that will come in this year. Some of the new regulations are regional, but are a good indicator of what may happen across the whole of the UK in the months and years ahead. Many are being introduced to tie in with the Government’s green agenda, while some are aimed at reducing accidents. Founder of … [Read more...]
Tighten up seat belt law, motorists tell RAC
More than two-thirds of motorists (68%) believe drivers should be responsible for ensuring all their passengers wear seatbelts, according to new RAC research released to coincide with today’s 40-year seatbelt law anniversary. Currently, drivers only have responsibility to make sure they and any children in their vehicles are buckled up properly – with the latter potentially needing to be in a … [Read more...]
M4 speeders targetted from today
Go Safe mobile enforcement will be starting on the M4 between junctions 33 and 34 today, following an increase in the number speed related collisions. Following the collisions, three speed surveys were conducted at different locations of the M4. The surveys measured a total of 213,372 vehicles, finding that 70,713 drivers were exceeding the speed limit, including 6,109 travelling at 85mph or … [Read more...]
E-scooters should be off Christmas lists
Loss adjuster CMA has seen a steady rise in e-scooter related claims over two years, mostly collisions involving other motorists, but also thefts. The increase is in line with Department for Transport figures showing the number of collisions involving e-scooters rose from 460 in 2020 to 1,352 in 2021. Earlier this month, a boy of 12 was killed in Birmingham, prompting the deputy lord mayor to … [Read more...]
12-year-olds taking cars
New research from Direct Line Motor Insurance reveals 1,156 people under the age of 18 have been charged with vehicle theft in the past three years, the equivalent of more than one per day. The statistics also reveal that children as young as 12 have been charged with the crime. More than half (53 per cent) of under-18s charged with vehicle theft in the past three years were aged between 15 and … [Read more...]
Parking is in the news again
An increasing number of councils are raising car parking fees in town centres to combat further budget deficits as the seasonal Christmas shopping spree is underway. Significant financial constraints put on councils sees some parking spot prices rise up to 33 per cent amid cost of living crisis. Online parking portal sees over 4,000 more parking space owners register in the past three months, … [Read more...]