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Insurance giant Norwich Union has warned businesses with fleet insurance policies to avoid the practice known as ‘Fronting’. This practice allows people who are not directly connected to the company to drive under its insurance. Mike Smith of NU said ‘Fronting in most instances, will invalidate the company insurance policy, leaving the business to pay for any damage to their vehicle. Also if any other driver is involved in an accident, while the insurer will be obliged to meet any liability cost, they can seek recovery of any such payments from the policyholder.’ By Graham Hill

I mentioned the tax changes that will take place in April 2009 relating to company cars. However, some people are confused over the affects on leased cars whilst others still have concerns over their capital allowances after the changes have taken place. It would of course be wise to seek the advice of your accountant but in order to shed some light on a confusing situation – I hope this helps. First of all one thing will not change and that is the position with regard to ‘Low CO2 Emission Cars’. Whilst the threshold Read more »

Fuel is coming down, the sun is shining and the banks are lending again. Well 2 out of three can’t be bad! I think the email from the Government to the banks must have got lost in cyberspace somewhere or maybe they sent it in the post without a large letter stamp attached. Either way I am still waiting, as are most in the finance industry, for the glimmer of light that suggests that Chancellor Brown oops I mean Darling did the right thing for us common people or whether things will continue to deteriorate. The annoying thing is Read more »

There are calls to introduce a new law against those staging accidents and making insurance claims, often making claims for injuries to passengers not in the car at the time of the accident. Fraudsters are hiring cars, finding lone drivers, normally women – getting in front of them and slamming on their brakes causing an accident. They sometimes even get cash from the other driver for damage caused to the hire car. Fears that this is reaching Read more »

Well having reported a few weeks ago that white cars have been making a comeback it would seem that used car buyers are not quite so keen according to Eutotax-Glass’s who report that some supercars and luxury grand tourers can lose as much as £5,000 compared to a popular metallic colour. Whereas some high performance and those fitted with sports kits do very well. To demonstrate the quirkiness of the market Read more »

After a damning report produced by Which magazine saying that the ‘super fuels’ did not save money, improve the car’s performance or improve the environment any more than standard fuels. BP stood by its claims of the benefits of it’s Ultimate fuels. It also criticised the fact that Which used only 3 mainstream models, a Ford Focus, Renault Megane and VW Golf. They said ‘It simply isn’t possible to obtain reliable comparison of the fuels based on Read more »

Avis Valet Services have been giving out some great tips for motorists looking to take better care of their car without spending a fortune. The suggest the following:

• Mayonnaise can be good at removing road tar stuck to tyres and paintwork.

• Try using cooking oil on tyres and paintwork to remove black marks left by stubborn brake dust on wheel arches. It’s also great for removing bird droppings or splattered bugs on your windscreen.

• Baking soda is excellent for lifting any kind of stain or mark, just dab the interior and leave for 20 mins before rinsing off. Leaves a fresh smell as well.

• Use white vinegar on windscreens for crystal clear visibility as vinegar stops dust and smells collecting on the glass.

• Wrap an ice cube in a cloth or pop some in a freezer bag and hold over chewing gum stuck to car seats or carpet. The gum will eventually snap off leaving no sticky residue.

• Linseed oil – this can be used to clean leather upholstery in you car as it cleans and softens at the same time.

• Sticky tape – use this to remove any hidden dust particles from seat fabric. The tape lifts the dust whereas a brush would simply push it in deeper.

 
So there you have it some interesting advice from Avis so blame them and not me if anything goes wrong. By Graham Hill

New legislation will be brought in to make it compulsory for all drivers to have an eye test at least every 15 years. Some bodies have said this period should be much less when drivers drive for a living but it is believed this will be reviewed once the new rules have been introduced. By Graham Hill

Whilst we are pretty much ripped off in the UK when it comes to new cars compared to the US it sometimes has advantages. At the moment many leasing companies in the US have refused to take on any more leasing business as the risk is all on them and the current drop in used car values is costing them a fortune. In order to achieve cheap rates in the UK the manufacturers have to Read more »

According to figures released by Warranty Direct, labour rates for mechanics have risen by 11.3% since the summer of 2006 to an average £75.17 per hour. Rates have increased sharpest by the independent garages to narrow the gap between them and the more expensive franchised dealer networks. The average franchised dealer is charging £95 an hour today compared with £88 in 2006, up 7.7%. In comparison Read more »