Tuesday, 16 August 2011
Young Driver Insurance Costs Fall
New figures released by the AA have shown a 5.6% drop in annual car insurance premiums for motorists in the 17-22 age group to £2,294 in the second quarter of this year, compared with the first three months.
Men aged 17 to 22 pay an average premium of £2,872, while women in the age group pay £1,671.
Simon Douglas, AA insurance director, said: "Young drivers have for a long time been the biggest losers in the insurance market with premiums driving them off the road.
"They share the greatest number of serious crashes, premiums have been rising at a disproportionate rate, but it seems at last that insurers are starting to compete a bit more for their business with rates starting to come down."
The average cost of annual car insurance premiums for all motorists reached £924 in the three months ended June, up 3.6% over the first quarter - the lowest increase for 18 months.
Source : www.moneydashboard.com/tips
Thursday, 21 July 2011
DSA Online Services This Weekend
Some of DSA’s online systems won’t be available from midnight Friday 22 July to 6.00 am on Sunday 24 July. This is due to essential maintenance work.
It will affect access to:
• online instructor services on Business Link
• the online booking service for practical tests on Directgov
• all online Driver CPC services
• DSA’s national speech recognition service for changing practical tests
You’ll still be able to use online theory test services by visiting direct.gov.uk/theorytest.
You’ll be able to go online from 6.00 am on Sunday as normal.
DSA is sorry for any inconvenience this may cause.
Source : DSA
It will affect access to:
• online instructor services on Business Link
• the online booking service for practical tests on Directgov
• all online Driver CPC services
• DSA’s national speech recognition service for changing practical tests
You’ll still be able to use online theory test services by visiting direct.gov.uk/theorytest.
You’ll be able to go online from 6.00 am on Sunday as normal.
DSA is sorry for any inconvenience this may cause.
Source : DSA
Monday, 27 June 2011
Dads Have Shorter Fuse With Their L Plate Off Spring
The results of a light hearted AA membership poll, completed exclusively by parents who have dared to take their son or daughter for a driving lesson reveals that dads by and large have a lower patience threshold than mums when it comes to instructing their children.
In the AA Membership poll which was completed by more than 3,700 parents across a wide range of ages, 28.5% of the dad’s quizzed, said they believed themselves to have been a very patient teacher, stating they remained calm and constructive throughout the lessons. A higher percentage of mums however, 35.9% gave themselves this same rating.
At the other end of the patience scale 11.3% of the dads surveyed during the AA Membership poll said they simply didn’t have the temperament for teaching their off spring how to drive. A slightly lower number of mums said the same. 9.2% of mums surveyed said teaching their children how to drive was far from their natural calling and a major test of their patience.
Among the individual comments received from this less successful group of parents were “never again!”, “my son simply would not take on board instructions”, “my foot was glued to the imaginary brake”, “I was a nervous wreck” and “I had holes gouged in the passenger seat”.
Overall 3.6% of the parents who trialed a lesson with their child said it was an unmitigated disaster which resulted in a massive argument followed by abandonment of the lesson altogether.
Source : www.hgvireland.com
In the AA Membership poll which was completed by more than 3,700 parents across a wide range of ages, 28.5% of the dad’s quizzed, said they believed themselves to have been a very patient teacher, stating they remained calm and constructive throughout the lessons. A higher percentage of mums however, 35.9% gave themselves this same rating.
At the other end of the patience scale 11.3% of the dads surveyed during the AA Membership poll said they simply didn’t have the temperament for teaching their off spring how to drive. A slightly lower number of mums said the same. 9.2% of mums surveyed said teaching their children how to drive was far from their natural calling and a major test of their patience.
Among the individual comments received from this less successful group of parents were “never again!”, “my son simply would not take on board instructions”, “my foot was glued to the imaginary brake”, “I was a nervous wreck” and “I had holes gouged in the passenger seat”.
Overall 3.6% of the parents who trialed a lesson with their child said it was an unmitigated disaster which resulted in a massive argument followed by abandonment of the lesson altogether.
Source : www.hgvireland.com
92% Of Teens Claim To Be Safe Drivers
Teens and summer are often a volatile cocktail, especially when it involves driving.
Results from a new survey show that when it comes to “near misses”, speeding, texting and distracted driving account for a high percentage of these incidents. The same survey shows teens are apt to blame everything from the weather to other drivers for these close calls – but not themselves and their inexperience.
The results of the 2011 Liberty Mutual/SADD (Students Against Destructive Decisions) teen driving study “gives parents reason to pause before they hand over the keys to their newly freed young driver,” according to SADD. The American study was initiated with a series of four focus groups in October 2010 and followed by a survey of 2,294 teens in eleventh and twelfth grades from 28 recruited high schools across the United States in January 2011. It discovered an “alarmingly high” number – 68 per cent of new drivers admit to having “narrowly avoided a crash” and a disturbing tendency to lay the blame elsewhere.
More than half (56 per cent) of the teens who experienced a “near miss” say they have experienced multiple such incidents. “Yet young drivers are more apt to blame external causes such as other drivers or the weather rather than owning up to any personal responsibility in the near-miss,” the report says.
More than one-third of them blame other drivers while 21 per cent say the weather was the primary cause. “But,” the authors of the report say, “when asked what they were doing in the car at the time of the incident, teens admitted to a rash of distractive or dangerous behaviors: Speeding, 30 per cent; Texting while driving, 21 per cent; Talking to passengers, 20 per cent and changing songs on their MP3 player, 17 per cent.”
When asked what was the primary contribution to the near miss, 9 per cent identified excessive speed, 13 per cent said it was texting while driving and 6 per cent admitted that talking with their passengers had distracted them.
There are a few glimmers of good news in the survey. For some young drivers, a close call causes them to re-examine their driving behaviour, albeit briefly. More than half (55 per cent) of those who admitted to a near miss said it made them clean up their act – mostly in terms of paying more attention (44 per cent), text less (26 per cent) and slow down (13 per cent). But 42 per cent admitted that these new behaviours lasted less than a month.
On the other hand, those who were actually involved in a crash, made “significant” changes in their driving habits. Almost 70 per cent of new drivers said the experience changed their habits and 58 per cent said it did so “forever.”
While crashes get all the attention, it is the more prevalent close calls “that should serve as a wake-up call to any driver,” says Dave Melton, Liberty Mutual’s managing director of global safety. “We don't want to wait for the crash to happen before we subscribe to safe driving practices; parents and teens can unite now on a commitment to responsibility behind the wheel.”
“The high prevalence of distracted and dangerous driving continues to be a concern, especially as we head into the summer months when the highest number of driving fatalities occurs,” said SADD Chairman Stephen Wallace. “We know from past Liberty Mutual/SADD research that teens are behind the wheel 44 per cent more hours each week in the summer (23.6 hours) than during the rest of the year (16.4 hours), adding some urgency for parents and teens to sit down and review their family rules of the road.”
And I’ve saved what might be the best for last. The survey also showed that 92 per cent of teens consider themselves to be safe and cautious drivers. But 12 per cent admit to driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol during the summer months.
Source : Richard Russell - www.theglobeandmail.com
Results from a new survey show that when it comes to “near misses”, speeding, texting and distracted driving account for a high percentage of these incidents. The same survey shows teens are apt to blame everything from the weather to other drivers for these close calls – but not themselves and their inexperience.
The results of the 2011 Liberty Mutual/SADD (Students Against Destructive Decisions) teen driving study “gives parents reason to pause before they hand over the keys to their newly freed young driver,” according to SADD. The American study was initiated with a series of four focus groups in October 2010 and followed by a survey of 2,294 teens in eleventh and twelfth grades from 28 recruited high schools across the United States in January 2011. It discovered an “alarmingly high” number – 68 per cent of new drivers admit to having “narrowly avoided a crash” and a disturbing tendency to lay the blame elsewhere.
More than half (56 per cent) of the teens who experienced a “near miss” say they have experienced multiple such incidents. “Yet young drivers are more apt to blame external causes such as other drivers or the weather rather than owning up to any personal responsibility in the near-miss,” the report says.
More than one-third of them blame other drivers while 21 per cent say the weather was the primary cause. “But,” the authors of the report say, “when asked what they were doing in the car at the time of the incident, teens admitted to a rash of distractive or dangerous behaviors: Speeding, 30 per cent; Texting while driving, 21 per cent; Talking to passengers, 20 per cent and changing songs on their MP3 player, 17 per cent.”
When asked what was the primary contribution to the near miss, 9 per cent identified excessive speed, 13 per cent said it was texting while driving and 6 per cent admitted that talking with their passengers had distracted them.
There are a few glimmers of good news in the survey. For some young drivers, a close call causes them to re-examine their driving behaviour, albeit briefly. More than half (55 per cent) of those who admitted to a near miss said it made them clean up their act – mostly in terms of paying more attention (44 per cent), text less (26 per cent) and slow down (13 per cent). But 42 per cent admitted that these new behaviours lasted less than a month.
On the other hand, those who were actually involved in a crash, made “significant” changes in their driving habits. Almost 70 per cent of new drivers said the experience changed their habits and 58 per cent said it did so “forever.”
While crashes get all the attention, it is the more prevalent close calls “that should serve as a wake-up call to any driver,” says Dave Melton, Liberty Mutual’s managing director of global safety. “We don't want to wait for the crash to happen before we subscribe to safe driving practices; parents and teens can unite now on a commitment to responsibility behind the wheel.”
“The high prevalence of distracted and dangerous driving continues to be a concern, especially as we head into the summer months when the highest number of driving fatalities occurs,” said SADD Chairman Stephen Wallace. “We know from past Liberty Mutual/SADD research that teens are behind the wheel 44 per cent more hours each week in the summer (23.6 hours) than during the rest of the year (16.4 hours), adding some urgency for parents and teens to sit down and review their family rules of the road.”
And I’ve saved what might be the best for last. The survey also showed that 92 per cent of teens consider themselves to be safe and cautious drivers. But 12 per cent admit to driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol during the summer months.
Source : Richard Russell - www.theglobeandmail.com
Saturday, 25 June 2011
Uninsured Drivers Face Loss Of Car
New laws to crack down on uninsured drivers are due to take effect, with offenders facing the possibility of having their car destroyed.
The new Continuous Insurance Enforcement law makes it an offence to be a keeper of an uninsured vehicle rather than just driving while uninsured.
From Monday registered keepers identified as having an uninsured vehicle will be sent a letter telling them that their vehicle appears to be uninsured, and warning them of the consequences if they fail to take action.
Those who do not act on this warning - either by taking out insurance or declaring their vehicle off the road - will receive a £100 fine and could have their vehicle clamped, seized and destroyed. They may also face a court prosecution.
Road Safety Minister Mike Penning said: "Anyone who receives a warning letter should take action immediately by getting insurance or contacting the DVLA (Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency) to declare their vehicle off the road."
The Motor Insurers' Bureau chief executive Ashton West said: "We know who the registered keepers are with vehicles that have no insurance and letters will be dropping on to their doormats from this week. It's no longer a case of if you will get caught, but when you will get caught.
"An estimated 1.4 million drivers are flouting the law by driving without insurance. This is a serious offence and results in accidents that cause about 160 deaths each year and more than 23,000 people are injured by uninsured drivers. It also adds around £30 per year to honest drivers' motor insurance policies."
Read more: http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/uk/uninsured-drivers-face-loss-of-car-16013685.html#ixzz1Pz8hKXO9Source : www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk
The new Continuous Insurance Enforcement law makes it an offence to be a keeper of an uninsured vehicle rather than just driving while uninsured.
From Monday registered keepers identified as having an uninsured vehicle will be sent a letter telling them that their vehicle appears to be uninsured, and warning them of the consequences if they fail to take action.
Those who do not act on this warning - either by taking out insurance or declaring their vehicle off the road - will receive a £100 fine and could have their vehicle clamped, seized and destroyed. They may also face a court prosecution.
Road Safety Minister Mike Penning said: "Anyone who receives a warning letter should take action immediately by getting insurance or contacting the DVLA (Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency) to declare their vehicle off the road."
The Motor Insurers' Bureau chief executive Ashton West said: "We know who the registered keepers are with vehicles that have no insurance and letters will be dropping on to their doormats from this week. It's no longer a case of if you will get caught, but when you will get caught.
"An estimated 1.4 million drivers are flouting the law by driving without insurance. This is a serious offence and results in accidents that cause about 160 deaths each year and more than 23,000 people are injured by uninsured drivers. It also adds around £30 per year to honest drivers' motor insurance policies."
Read more: http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/uk/uninsured-drivers-face-loss-of-car-16013685.html#ixzz1Pz8hKXO9Source : www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk
Tuesday, 21 June 2011
Driving Lessons: It's Worth The Wait To Get In The Fast Lane
People who postpone their driving lessons get cheaper insurance and are safer on the road. It doesn't make passing any easier though, says late learner Elisa Bray.
I've just made a reservation at The Ivy and I'm feeling a little resentful. Some years ago, I made a bet with my younger sister that she wouldn't pass her driving test before me. The prize? Dinner at The Ivy.
My sister took her test at 17 and passed. But here I am, approaching 30 and nowhere near a practical test. What's more, I dread 2pm on a Friday – the time of my weekly lesson. My heart races and it takes at least five minutes to remember how to manoeuvre the car. To avoid oncoming cars, I'd be driving on the pavement if I could. As soon as I've mastered one thing, there's something else.
But plenty of people do learn to drive as an adult – 36 per cent of those who took their test last year were aged 25 and above. It just might take longer. For every year of your age, you need one-and-a-half hours of professional training, not including private practice. For a 30-year-old, that means 45 hours.
With every year, the pass rate decreases by a little over 1 per cent. According to statistics from the Driving Standards Agency, if I take my practical test next year I'll have a 14 per cent slimmer chance of passing than if I'd taken it at 17. The pass rate last year was 55.1 per cent for 17-year-olds, but in your 70s you're looking at half that.
Why the discrepancy? In our teens our sense of invincibility leads us to take more risks, but as we get older we are held back by our fears of consequences. Then there are the superior psychomotor skills (co-ordination) of a teenager and the ability to master new skills quickly.
Nothing has seemed as daunting as being charge of 1.3 tons of metal – manipulating both feet over three pedals, while grappling with a gear stick and steering wheel and watching out for parked cars, moving cars, road signs and pedestrians. I don't recall anyone at school discussing how difficult driving was, although a few years later it did take one of my best friends, despite an Oxford education, nine tests to pass. I've had a few stalled attempts at learning and, until last week, after 30 hours of lessons I'd never gone beyond 30mph and third gear.
Nothing is more frustrating than when I've checked my mirrors and am ready to go only to start fumbling around and have to start all over again. The AA's Head of Road Safety, Andrew Howard, says: "The ability to split your attention becomes harder as you get older. You're probably more mentally equipped to learn things when you're 17 or 18. You probably feel less immortal as you get older and are more worried. When we criticise young drivers, we tend to say they have the skills to drive but tend not to use them. When you [older drivers] eventually get to drive you're not going to have to impress your friends with your driving skills."
There is another benefit for older drivers. While younger drivers face insurance bills of thousands no matter how cheap their car is (the AA's quote is £5,232.56 for a 17-year-old male and £2,911.01 for a female), if I pass now, the insurance will cost a much less than that.
My main issue was confidence. Last lesson, I was so nervous I spent 15 minutes persuading my instructor that I wasn't ready to take on dual carriageways. Now I've just made it to fifth gear and 50mph on the A41. And my instructor even had to tell me to slow down.
Source : Elisa Bray - www.independent.co.uk/life-style/motoring
I've just made a reservation at The Ivy and I'm feeling a little resentful. Some years ago, I made a bet with my younger sister that she wouldn't pass her driving test before me. The prize? Dinner at The Ivy.
My sister took her test at 17 and passed. But here I am, approaching 30 and nowhere near a practical test. What's more, I dread 2pm on a Friday – the time of my weekly lesson. My heart races and it takes at least five minutes to remember how to manoeuvre the car. To avoid oncoming cars, I'd be driving on the pavement if I could. As soon as I've mastered one thing, there's something else.
But plenty of people do learn to drive as an adult – 36 per cent of those who took their test last year were aged 25 and above. It just might take longer. For every year of your age, you need one-and-a-half hours of professional training, not including private practice. For a 30-year-old, that means 45 hours.
With every year, the pass rate decreases by a little over 1 per cent. According to statistics from the Driving Standards Agency, if I take my practical test next year I'll have a 14 per cent slimmer chance of passing than if I'd taken it at 17. The pass rate last year was 55.1 per cent for 17-year-olds, but in your 70s you're looking at half that.
Why the discrepancy? In our teens our sense of invincibility leads us to take more risks, but as we get older we are held back by our fears of consequences. Then there are the superior psychomotor skills (co-ordination) of a teenager and the ability to master new skills quickly.
Nothing has seemed as daunting as being charge of 1.3 tons of metal – manipulating both feet over three pedals, while grappling with a gear stick and steering wheel and watching out for parked cars, moving cars, road signs and pedestrians. I don't recall anyone at school discussing how difficult driving was, although a few years later it did take one of my best friends, despite an Oxford education, nine tests to pass. I've had a few stalled attempts at learning and, until last week, after 30 hours of lessons I'd never gone beyond 30mph and third gear.
Nothing is more frustrating than when I've checked my mirrors and am ready to go only to start fumbling around and have to start all over again. The AA's Head of Road Safety, Andrew Howard, says: "The ability to split your attention becomes harder as you get older. You're probably more mentally equipped to learn things when you're 17 or 18. You probably feel less immortal as you get older and are more worried. When we criticise young drivers, we tend to say they have the skills to drive but tend not to use them. When you [older drivers] eventually get to drive you're not going to have to impress your friends with your driving skills."
There is another benefit for older drivers. While younger drivers face insurance bills of thousands no matter how cheap their car is (the AA's quote is £5,232.56 for a 17-year-old male and £2,911.01 for a female), if I pass now, the insurance will cost a much less than that.
My main issue was confidence. Last lesson, I was so nervous I spent 15 minutes persuading my instructor that I wasn't ready to take on dual carriageways. Now I've just made it to fifth gear and 50mph on the A41. And my instructor even had to tell me to slow down.
Source : Elisa Bray - www.independent.co.uk/life-style/motoring
No-Show Driving Test Examiners Cost Taxpayer £500,000 A Year
Driving examiners who call in sick are costing the taxpayer £500,000 a year in compensation.
New figures show that an average of 310 learners a day have their tests cancelled at the last minute.
Students who are let down can claim for loss of earnings, exam fees and the cost of hiring the instructor’s car.
But the shocking dent in the public purse would be three times as high if everyone entitled to compensation made a claim.
A total of 113,177 tests were cancelled with less than three days’ notice in the 12 months up to April. Of those, 23,000 were because examiners were ill.
A Driving Standards Agency spokeswoman said: “Driving tests are notoriously stressful for any learner. But this sickness record suggests that even the examiners are feeling the strain.”
Read more: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2011/06/19/no-show-driving-test-examiners-cost-taxpayer-500-000-a-year-115875-23210220/#ixzz1PnUmS11USource : Adrian Butler - www.mirror.co.uk
New figures show that an average of 310 learners a day have their tests cancelled at the last minute.
Students who are let down can claim for loss of earnings, exam fees and the cost of hiring the instructor’s car.
But the shocking dent in the public purse would be three times as high if everyone entitled to compensation made a claim.
A total of 113,177 tests were cancelled with less than three days’ notice in the 12 months up to April. Of those, 23,000 were because examiners were ill.
A Driving Standards Agency spokeswoman said: “Driving tests are notoriously stressful for any learner. But this sickness record suggests that even the examiners are feeling the strain.”
Read more: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2011/06/19/no-show-driving-test-examiners-cost-taxpayer-500-000-a-year-115875-23210220/#ixzz1PnUmS11USource : Adrian Butler - www.mirror.co.uk
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