News

The London riots which have spread to many other cities and towns in the UK have often seen damage to cars as well as property. A lot of cars have been burned and destroyed as well as others having windscreens smashed and other damage done to them.

Owners of these cars may just assume that they can claim the damage on tehir insurance policy, but it will actually depend on tehir specific policy. Not all insurance policies will cover this sort of damage and so some car owners may find that they are not entitled to get any money at all.

It is important to make a claim as soon as possible. It may be difficult to think about making a claim when you might be in shock about  what has happened. However, some insurance companies have rulings on how soon a claim must be made and if it is not made on time, then you may find that they will not pay out. This will be the case if the vehicle is only covered under the third party, fire and theft cover and so it is important to get in touch with your insurers as soon as possible to check the details.

If your insurance does not cover you, then it may be possible to be able to make a claim to the police through the Riots (Damages) Act 1886 but you will have to make that claim within 14 days of the damage being caused. There has been a request for this time period to be extended, but it is best just to get on and make the claim as soon as you can.

Ecotricity, a Stroud based green energy supplier has installed 12 charging stations for electric cars in Welcome Break service stations across the country. They plan to put an additional 17 in before the end of the year.

This is great news because at present there are very few charging stations at the moment, which means that electric car owners cannot travel long distances. This means that it may encourage more drivers to buy electric cars, as they will know that they can charge en route.

The charging stations can charge at two different speeds. The lowest current allows cars to charge up overnight, which will be useful if the driver is staying in one of the hotels near the service station. However, newer cars can be charged much more quickly and there is also a facility for this so that those whcih can, will be able to top up in 20 minutes or fully charge in an hour.

It is hoped that sales of electric cars will increase because there will be less fears about the distance that can be driven by them. However, there are still some green authorities that are worried about the electric cars because they are not sure that they are as green as the batteries are not nice to dispose of. However, they are the only solution at the moment to a cleaner car which causes less pollution and in theory can run on green energy if they are topped up by electric produced by solar power or other green sources of electricity.

The public sector strike action being taken by some union members could have a big effect on travellers tomorrow. Immigrations officers will be striking and so anyone entering the UK may find they are delays, whether they are arriving by plane or ferry. It has been confirmed that Eurostar will not be effected.

There have been recent reports to show that more people are using public transport, but anything which causes any sort of delay can give them a bad reputation. Trains and planes are often known for delays and the strikes on the London Underground recently and some problems with certain trains because of damaged power lines, would not fail to have been noticed by the public,

With increasing fuel prices, this is a good time where public transport companies should be working hard to encourage people to use their services and try to tempt them in to forming a habit of using it all the time. If a cheap solution for drivers comes along, perhaps when electric cars become cheaper or things like that, then people may switch to them. However, if they are enjoying the advantages of public transport, then they may not want to go back. There are many advantages such as being more comfortable and relaxing and being able to work while travelling or perhaps sleep or just relax. Sometimes the journeys can be quicker and cheaper as well.

The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, has been warned that if he does not come up with a good plan on tackling congestion in the city centre, he may face gridlock. The London Assembly have put together a report which predicts that transport issues need a more dynamic approach.

The mayor, has predicted in the past that traffic delays will increase over the next 20 years by 20%, but if measures were taken this could be reduced to 14%. It has also been reported that this is a top priority for him. However, the report has called for updated projections for congestion and a more detailed response.

Transport for London have put forward a lane rental proposal but that needs to be looked in to in more detail, especially where with regards to the costs. It proposes that utility companies are charged for digging up roads and they have to apply for the permit. Concerns were over how this cost would be passed on to customers by the utility companies. Most committee members also called for more priority to be given to sustainable transport such as bikes, walking, public transport and traffic which is important to the economy such as freight transporters.

A spokesperson for the mayor explained that he was already working on tackling problems such as having a bicycle hire scheme which has proved to be successful and re phasing traffic lights to ease congestion. The mayor and Transport for London are investing billions to increase capacity on the roads, keep traffic flowing smoothly and upgrading things. They reported that delays had been reduced over the last year at traffic lights and road work disruption significantly decreased.

The decision to reinstate the Bahrain Grand Prix has caused concern for a lot of drivers and teams. The decision was made to call off the event because of the political unrest in the country but it was decided last week, that the race would be going ahead again.

Many teams have written to the F1A to express tehir concerns about the race going ahead. If they all refuse to take part, then they will not be abl e to go ahead with the race. Although no one is against eventually having a race there, with the political situation still not resolved fully, it is a risk that most do not want to take.

It is a rule of F1A that no changes to arrangements can be made without the agreement of all the competitors. With so many of them against the decision then it should not go ahead, despite the vote of the F1A.

Drivers are also upset about the fact that the race was rescheduled to October, meaning that the India race that was due to take place then will be moved to December. This is a time when most drivers take tehir holidays and they will not be keen to have to race at this time.

There will be a number plate auction at the Heritage Motor Centre in Warwickshire on the 26th – 28th May inclusive. There is just one day left to register as a bidder, but even if you do not want to buy at this time, it is still a good opportunity to take a look at what is around and how much it is selling for.

You can download the catalogue online from the DVLA website and take a look at the plates that will be up for auction and their guide prices. If you have already registered with them then you will be able to make telephone bids or even Internet bids as there is no need to be there in person. In fact this type of sale really needs no presence because you know exactly what you will gettingf or your money, unlike when you buy an object when you need to examine its condition first.

If you want to place a bid, then it is important to find the registration in the catalogue and when it will be auctioned. You will then know at what time you will need to place your bid. You can bid in advance, of course, but you will need to make sure that you meet the deadline.

The auction will be streamed live online, so you will have a chance to see what money your preferred registration reaches and whether you have won it or not.

The prices of the lots vary a lot. each has a reserve which will need to be met and these start at just a few hundred pounds and go up to thousands. This means that there is something for everyone.

The Japanese Tsunami had a big effect on the car industry when its production was effected. Renesas Electronics is a Japanese company that make micro chips for cars. With so many functions in a car needing micro chips – everything from engines to brakes, each car needs about 100 in order to function.

The company had to stop production when the earthquake came in March and are still struggling to keep up with demand. Normally there woudl not be a problem but with the company holding 70% of the market share in Japan, the Japanese car manufacturers are really noticing.

Normally car firms are supplied with enough micro chips but the stop in production has meant that there is a world shortage. It is not only Japanese cars that are suffering as they hold a global market share of 40% and so everyone will be noticing a difference in supply.

The micro chips have been out of production for a few months and many of them are not available from other suppliers and it could take 6 months for a new company to be able to produce something to that cars specific requirements.

It has been predicted that the company will be able to start full production again on 15th June and it will then take 2 months before anything can be shipped out and so some car manufacturers, especially Japanese ones, will find that there is a shortage in the cars available for them to sell. It is predicted that things will be sorted out by the end of the year.

Police are trying to trace two men who were seen pushing a car in to a petrol station, filling up and then driving off without paying. The incident happened in a Tesco express in Ardwick Green, Greater Manchester on 5th May. The CCTV camera footage has been released in the hope that the men might be recognised.

The area has recently seen up to £1,000 worth of petrol thefts and it is thought that they might all be down to the same couple. There have been ‘drive-offs’ in Denton, Stockport,Hulme, Bolton, West Didsbury and Withington. Between 5th April and 7th April these thefts occurred and the thieves all fitted the same or a similar description. They have reason to believe that the men caught on CCTV camera are the same couple that committed all of the other offences in the region the previous month.

The police have said that the fact that the thieves appeared to have run out of petrol seems comical, and the footage is rather funny to watch but their offences are very serious and they are appealing for anyone who knows anything to come forward. The main offender has been described as a slim Asian man about 5ft 10 in in his early 20′s. The police are determined to catch whoever is doing it and hope that by gathering evidence about the black Volkswagon Golf with stolen plates that was captured on the CCTV footage or the man in question they will come closer to capturing him.

Surrey County Council have applied for funds to install a network of car charging stations in the area. They are hoping to get a £5m grant from the Department of Transport so that they can set up the charging stations and work with local businesses to set up a loan scheme for electric cars.

Electric cars are becoming more popular, with several car manufacturers producing fully electric cars. London has already got a selection of charging stations and many other counties are trying to follow suit. At the moment, with few charging stations around, drivers are limited on the distances that they can travel. However, with the charging stations, it means that they can stop and recharge. They can take about 30 minutes at the moment, a good amount of time for the driver to have a break and a coffee or something. A lot of research is being done on batteries though and it could be quite soon that they will be available so that they charge up almost instantly. This will make things a lot easier.

If charging stations do start appearing in a lot of places it will mean that the chances of being able to charge your car will be much greater and this will increase sale of these types of car. With no fuel duty on electricity many people are thinking about using this type of vehicle to save them money. At the moment the cars can only be bought new and so are an expensive option for many, but once the charging stations appear and the cars start being sold on the second hand market, it is likely that the popularity of this type of vehicle will grow.

Many drivers were hoping that the budget would bring about some changes to fuel prices. The reduction of fuel duty by just 1p was just not enough for many of them and the fact that the chancellor said he would ensure garages did not push prices too high, did little to reassure most people.

It was even reported that some garages put their prices up ahead of the budget, predicting that duty might be put down, so that when they later reduced prices, they could still keep on making the same amount of profit, if not more. Others said that they had to sell the fuel they bought at the higher price before they were prepared to lower the petrol cost.

It is a difficult time for drivers and with no changes to the car tax or anything else, they did not really have a lot to celebrate. A week on, people had forgotten about the 1p drop in prices because they all seemed to have gone up again.

It seem slike desperate drivers will have to start thinking about alternative ways to power tehir vehicles if they want to make significant savings. Electricity seems to be something which is growing in popularity and once charging stations increase in number, it could be a way to make significant savings because there is no fuel duty on electricity.

This could also make the roads cleaner and quieter which would be more pleasant for everyone. However, if drivers do long journeys, they will need to be reassured that they can charge up somewhere for a reasonable price and in a quick time.