All caused by accident management companies that harrass you until you claim. 

Car Insurance costs to soar with young drivers to bear the £1,000 brunt 

Young drivers could see their car insurance premiums soar by up to £1,000 as a result of changes to personal injury payouts made by the Government. 

Experts predict the changes will add £75 to the price of an average insurance policy, with drivers aged 65 in line to pay an extra £300 for insurance and young drivers losing out by up to £1,000. 

The Ministry of Justice has announced it would cut the lump-sum compensation payout discount rate from 2.5 per cent to a -0.75 per cent. When accident victims are given large compensation payments by insurers, the sum is adjusted to take into account the extra interest they could earn from investing it. 

The new, -0.75 per cent rate will apply from 20 March onwards, and will mean insurers will end up paying more for compensation claims, which in turn increases premiums for motorists.
The Association of British Insurers (ABI) labelled the move “crazy”. It said: ”Claims costs will soar, making it inevitable that there will be an increase in motor and liability premiums for millions of drivers and businesses across the UK. We estimate that up to 36 million individual and business motor insurance policies could be affected in order to over- compensate a few thousand claimants a year.” 

The ABI added that the changes will hit drivers most commonly involved in accidents that result in injury payouts, namely young and old drivers.
Mohammad Khan, UK general insurance leader at accountancy PwC, said the move was “not anticipated by the insurance industry.” He added: “As a direct result of this change, we anticipate an increase of £50-£75 on an average comprehensive motor insurance policy, with higher increases for younger and older drivers – potentially up to £1,000 for younger drivers (18-22 year olds) and a rise of up to £300 for older drivers (over 65 years old). 

“This announcement, on top of the recent increases in insurance premium tax, will make redundant any savings to premiums as a result of the Government’s personal injury legal reforms which were anticipated to generate approximately £40 saving per motor insurance policy.” 

The ABI pointed out that it’s not just insurers and motorists looking to lose out, but also institutions like the NHS, who will likely face a “£1 billion hike in compensation bills when it needs it the least.”
The MoJ said the reason it decided to cut the rate was because the old formula, used since 2001, was based on interest obtained from investing in Government bonds. 

But when inflation is taken into account, the returns from the bonds would have been negative, so it had to adjust the rate so that: “Compensation awards using the rate should put the claimant in the same financial position had they not been injured, including loss of future earnings and care costs.” 

Well done Ashley H on passing 1st time today. You deserve it fella. All the hard work pays off again. 

 Congratulations Kurtis on passing this week. You put the work in and fully deserve it. 

With over double the cars on the road in the last 20 years surely eysight requirements have to change 

David Williams of The Telegraph writes…. 

At 70mph in the centre lane of a motorway, I suddenly notice that something is wrong. It’s like peering through mist as I squint at what might be a row of cones, or perhaps road-works, 300 yards ahead. Too late I realise it’s a slow-moving queue of traffic and, before I have time to react, one of the vehicles veers out in front.
I yank the steering wheel of the Honda Civic and swerve into the outside lane. No damage done, but it’s a shocking near miss. 

“Test drive over,” I’m told. “Bring the car to a gradual halt.” Fortunately this isn’t for real, although my thumping heart tells me otherwise. I have been “driving” a simulator at the Transport Research Laboratory (TRL) in Berkshire. 

Thirty minutes earlier it seemed easy as I drove along the same motorway without mishap. On this second trip, however, my usual 20/20 vision has been “corrected” to the legal minimum (the level at which Britain’s 31 million drivers are allowed to drive, the standard required during the basic L-test eyesight test) by an optometrist, using eye examination lenses. I now feel as though I’m driving half-blind and my confidence has plummeted. It’s harder to stay in lane, harder to tell what’s going on ahead – and leads to that high-speed incident. 

In the third test my eyesight is further adjusted to just below the legal minimum to simulate the vision experienced by untold numbers of motorists who either don’t bother to wear glasses or lenses, or who simply don’t realise how much their eyesight has diminished over the years. 

The effect is alarming. The mist I found so disconcerting earlier has turned to fog, roadside signs are far harder to read and looming queues of traffic even harder to spot. A blue hatchback swerves in front and a glancing blow sends me ricocheting into the outside lane. It’s a relief as I switch off. 

Computer analysis shows that with each degradation of my eyesight my ability to remain in lane has deteriorated and my reactions have slowed. I’m driving too close to vehicles ahead, dramatically reducing my chances of reacting to hazards in time. Just like thousands of other motorists, every day.
A new Direct Line survey reveals that millions routinely drive with bad eyesight, putting themselves at risk of exactly the same kind of incident I’ve just experienced. The survey of 2,003 adults found that 13.3 million UK motorists risk their lives and those of other road users by driving with poor eyesight as a result of not wearing their glasses or contact lenses. A fifth admitted to always driving without them. 

Direct Line’s study found that 16 per cent of drivers have had an accident in the past two years, increasing to 67 per cent for those who needed glasses or contact lenses but didn’t wear them. Meanwhile, 37 per cent admitted to not having had a vision test in the past two years or more. Regular sight testing should be compulsory for all motorists
Under the rules, L-test candidates must be able to read a number plate at 65ft (20 metres), with spectacles or lenses if needed, before taking the driving test. Drivers should meet this standard as long as they hold a licence but, it seems, thousands don’t. Even when they reach 70, drivers re-applying for a licence need only tick a box confirming that their vision is up to standard. 

Department for Transport figures reveal that 260 accidents in 2014 were caused by uncorrected, defective eyesight, nine of which were fatal, 56 serious and 195 slight – evidence that is now prompting demands for a review of the vision check ahead of the driving test, and demands for follow-up, periodic eyesight tests as drivers age. DfT figures reveal that only 529 test candidates failed the eyesight test in 2015-16. 

Henry Leonard, clinical and regulatory officer for the Association of Optometrists, who oversaw my experiment at TRL, said: “It’s worrying. There is no re- quirement for drivers to have regular sight tests; a 17-year-old who can read a number plate when they take their driving test may continue driving for the rest of their life with no further checks.
“Roadside tests have shown that many drivers subsequently fall below the required standard as their eyesight changes over time, often without 

realising. Regular sight testing should be compulsory for all motorists.”
Philip Gomm of the RAC Foundation said: “We subject our cars to yearly MoT checks, so why take less care about our own bodies given that human factors account for most accidents? The best evidence is that drivers should have a vision check at least every five years, increasing to every two years after the age of 60.”
Road safety charity Brake agrees, describing the current test as “a throwback to the Sixties” and not fit for purpose. It believes 2,900 casualties each year are caused by drivers with poor vision. A Brake spokesman said: “It fails to measure for visual acuity and visual field, and allows people to drive with eyesight that makes them unsafe. We need the Government to make it compulsory for drivers to prove a recent professional eyesight test when renewing their licence. Every 10 years for the general population and every three years for those over the age of 70.
Gus Park, commercial director of motor insurance at Direct Line, said: “This research shows just how dangerous it can be to drive without good or corrected eyesight. The driving eyesight check [ahead of the driving test] is a moment in time and, for many drivers, the only sight test they have had in more than 20 years. We would encourage a review into vision-testing to ensure the safety of all road users.” 

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency, however, defends the test, claiming it is “simple and effective and can be reproduced by motorists to check whether they meet the standards themselves, as well as by police at the roadside”.
A DVSA spokesman said: “Mandatory eyesight tests would put the majority of drivers, who already ensure they can meet the legal eyesight standards, to considerable inconvenience and expense. 

“All drivers are required by law to meet the appropriate eyesight standard. Failing to do so is an offence.” 

Edmund King, president of the AA, however, remains unconvinced. “It’s time to look at whether the eye test is still indeed adequate,” he said. “Certainly, we should ask; is there a more modern way of testing it than looking at a number plate? That hasn’t changed for years. If it makes the roads safer, it would be worth it.” 

As an Adi of 15 years I have to ask HOW?
Worst learner drivers test attempt numbers revealed 

England’s 20 worst learner drivers have attempted the practical test more than 700 times between them, it has emerged. 

Figures released by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) show how one 38-year-old Liverpool man took 39 goes to pass the driving test. Heckmondwike, in Yorkshire, accounted for a fifth of the top 20 practical test repeaters. 

The Driving Instructors Association questioned whether people should be able to sit tests so many times. 

DVSA’s chief examiner Lesley Young said: “The result of their test is entirely dependent on their performance on the day. It’s essential that all drivers demonstrate they have the right skills, knowledge and attitude to drive safely.” 

The figures also include the top 20 repeat theory test candidates. Between them, the top 20 have attempted to take the test 1,309 times. Only eight have yet managed to pass. 

Topping the list was a 30-year-old woman who has sat the theory test 113 times at the Ilford centre.
The second spot was taken by a 40-year-old man who has tried 107 times at the Ilford centre followed by a 30-year-old man who has failed 86 times in Peterborough. 

So 

The latest figures prove mobile phone use, texting being the main cause, kills more people than drunk driving. The main cause of “accidents” on the roads at this time is mobile phone related. As someone on the roads for hours daily I can honestly tell you mobile phone use behind the wheel is on the increase. Fewer drivers on mobile phones ‘caught by police’ 

The number of drivers caught using a mobile phone behind the wheel has almost halved in five years, the BBC can reveal. 

In 2011-12, 178,000 people were stopped by police in the UK, compared with under 95,000 in 2015-16.
Of the 43 police forces in the UK asked by the BBC, 37 gave figures for how many drivers had been caught using their phones while driving. 

The National Police Federation said the drop was due to fewer traffic officers. 

Police chiefs say officers can take different courses of action against offenders, including sending them on courses about the consequences of being distracted at the wheel, as well as prosecuting them.
Kent Police had the biggest percentage decrease in the number of drivers stopped for using a phone at the wheel, from 4,496 in 2011-12 to 723 in 2015-16 – a reduction of 84%. 

Wiltshire Police also saw a decrease in numbers from 2,008 to 412 in the same period – a drop of almost 80%.
Overall, the number of people stopped by police forces who responded to the BBC in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland fell by 47% in the last five years, the BBC found. 

Mobile phone use in cars 

Over the past five years 

*   The number of drivers caught using a mobile phone has dropped by nearly a half

*   In 2012 the number of drivers caught was178,000

*   This fell in 2016 to 94,000

*   The number of police forces which provided usable data to the FOI request was 37 out of 43 
’Changing attitudes’ 
A spokesman for the National Police Chief’s Council said: “Budget cuts have impacted on the number of traffic officers, yet road policing enforcement is also a core duty of all police officers, as well as the specialist teams.”
Ch Con Suzette Davenport, from the council, said: “Police have adapted to significant increases in motorists’ use of mobile phones at the wheel, as well as phones themselves becoming much smarter. 
”Like drink driving, we have to work towards changing people’s attitudes.
”This problem cannot be solved by enforcement alone – we need to build awareness and make it socially unacceptable to use a mobile phone while driving.” 
Officers cut 
Jane Willetts, from the Police Federation for England and Wales, said: “It’s no surprise that our figures have dropped because the number of operational roads policing officers whose core role would be to target the mobile phone offences has significantly dropped as well. “Since 2000 the number of officers has almost halved. The two go hand in hand.” 
She said there were now fewer than 4,000 roads policing officers.
She said the federation welcomed new legislation to introduce “much tougher penalties” being proposed by the government. 
Under new rules expected to come in next year, drivers will get six points on their licence and face a £200 fine. Newly qualified drivers could be made to retake their test the first time they are caught. Source: BBC News

We covered the limits earlier in another blog. 33 drivers who are caught high on drugs 

each day: Positive results found in 40% of 

cases where police perform roadside tests 

Police are catching a record 33 motorists a day driving while high on drugs, figures show.
In just one month, 1,000 motorists were found to be driving under the influence of drugs such as heroin, cocaine and 

cannabis when they were pulled over by police.
Official figures show that forces are now recording positive results for as many as 40 per cent of suspects who are stopped at the roadside and drug-tested.
The numbers have highlighted the hidden epidemic of drug-driving across Britain.
During a month-long summer blitz, police discovered around 4,500 drink-drive motorists and more than 1,000 with drugs such as heroin, cocaine and cannabis in their system.
It follows a similar crackdown over Christmas when a campaign by police forces across Britain saw 933 drivers test positive for drugs.
The figures, released by the National Police Chiefs’ Council, showed more people were detected drug-driving in December than in the whole of 2014.
Nearly 50 per cent of the 1,888 drivers tested were found to be under the influence of drugs. In the summer blitz, almost 50,000 vehicles were stopped between June 10 and July 10 when the Euro 2016 football tournament was on. Around 45,000 breath tests were carried out, with one in 10 motorists found not fit to drive.
Of those, 4,539 motorists tested positive for drink-driving or refused the test. Another 2,588 were screened for drugs, with 1,028 positive tests.
In 279 cases, the driver had already been involved in a collision when they were tested, with 66 found to be under the influence of a banned substance.
The Government announced fresh measures to tackle the problem of drug-driving with an extra £1million to pay for training in England and Wales police forces and equipment and new legislation to crack down on intoxicated motorists.

What possible reason is there?

Drunk driver with ‘gun in lap’ in east London jailed 

Nathan Gardier, 24, admitting having a firearm and ammunition in a public place and being in charge of a vehicle while above the legal alcohol limit. 

Snaresbrook Crown Court heard he fell asleep at traffic lights in east London while carrying the 9mm pistol earlier this month. 

He was jailed for five-and-a-half years and given a year’s driving ban. 

‘Bullet in the chamber’ 

The court heard Gardier, of Falmer Road, Walthamstow, believed it was “probably fate” he was arrested with the pistol on nearby Willow Walk on 4 August and “must be something God has put in my path for a reason”. 

His barrister, Mohammed Bashir, told the court his client had found the weapon in a field, but Recorder Sally Hales QC said that was “utterly implausible”. 

Sentencing him, she said she had to impose a strong term as a deterrent “because of the dangers such weapons can do”.
”In your case the harm that you presented was worse because the firearm was loaded, ready to be fired, with a bullet in the chamber,” she said.

Why would you drive this on a motorway?

Mobility scooter-driving ‘old man’ stopped on M60 

A man driving a mobility scooter along a motorway has been stopped by police. 

It happened on the hard shoulder of the M60 close to Barton Bridge near the Trafford Centre, Greater Manchester at about 11:25am on Sunday.
Witnesses who were concerned for the man’s safety contacted officers after seeing him on a slip road. 

NW Motorway Police tweeted they had responded to reports of the “older male” who was “scootering” down the inside lane of the motorway. 

Source: BBC News 

The clue is too close!

Motorists face prosecution for driving too close to cyclists 

Motorists who endanger cyclists by getting too close to them will be prosecuted for driving without due care and attention under a new scheme.
West Midlands Police have begun proceedings against 38 motorists for what is known as close passing – giving cyclists less than a metre-and-a-half of room. 

Police officers on bikes equipped with cameras are patrolling busy roads and radioing ahead to patrol cars when they film bad driving, with most offenders being given roadside advice. 

Traffic officer and cyclist PC Mark Hodson said: “As a police force we must do our utmost to protect vulnerable road users and show that anyone who puts them in danger through poor driving will be dealt with.
”Cyclists may suddenly need to avoid uneven road surfaces or obstacles like drain covers so it’s important to afford them plenty of room when overtaking.” 

More than 21,000 cyclists were injured on Britain’s roads in 2014, with 113 killed.
Champion triathlete Constantine Mamole (pictured) was badly injured when he was knocked off his bike by a car two years ago.
Now back at work at his Kings Of Cycling shop in Leeds he has made a full physical recovery, but says he is too anxious to train on the road and has not raced since.
”It affects your professional life, your personal life, you become a different person,” he said.
”It has a massive impact on any cyclist.”