Monday, 21. September 2009
One of the effects of the recession is that apparently greenhouse emissions are substantially down as a result of cost savings and people traveling less miles in their cars and vans. Whilst this is great news for the environment and has helped to stabilize fuel prices it may also have a positive effect on the lease cost of cars on either contract hire or contract purchase. If you find that you are now traveling substantially fewer miles in your car you should Read more »
Sunday, 20. September 2009
Following on from the warning about crooks a warning has been issued by the Finance & Leasing Association regarding another fraud that is on the increase. Bogus rental and lease companies are being set up that provide criminals with access to what appear to be legitimate insured and taxed vehicles. The vehicles are obtained fraudulently on finance then sublet with Read more »
Saturday, 19. September 2009
Fraud is on the increase as Internet and other car finance brokers find themselves up against it. Add this to the fact that people are now starting to realise that loans are not simply down to APR and leasing isn’t simply down to monthly rental. Take out finance and you have to sign a document locking you into many terms and conditions that you agree to by Read more »
Friday, 18. September 2009
Just recently manufacturer’s own finance arms have been competing head on with the major leasing specialists such as Lex, Lombard etc. In some cases this has put off customers from using brokers and, as a result, going direct to dealers. This can be dangerous because if you use a broker, who has been in the industry for sometime, such as me, we know which dealers to use in order to Read more »
Tuesday, 15. September 2009
Apparently the use of hand held phones whilst driving has increased because of, wait for it, the recession! Yep, it’s true according to a survey carried out by ING Car Lease. Apparently more drivers who drive cars on business feel under pressure to receive and make calls when driving rather than miss important calls that may result in Read more »
Sunday, 13. September 2009
Do you have a photo licence? If you do how long have you had it because if it is over or close to 10 years you will need to update the photo or face a fine of up to £1,000. In a poll carried out by Fleet News it was found that 24% of those questioned didn’t know that there was a requirement to renew the photograph, they thought it lasted as long as Read more »
Saturday, 5. September 2009
Whilst we are still having our flabbers gasted how big do you think the joint operation of Hyundai and Kia are? Most people think that production has only just been moved out of the garden shed but in fact the Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group has become the fourth largest global automotive manufacturer, according to the Automotive News Data Centre. In fact the Korean manufacturer has now overtaken Ford as they have seen production drop by 30% in the first half of 2009. With a lot of good feedback these days on Hyundai and Kia product maybe we should take a closer look at them. By Graham Hill
Thursday, 3. September 2009
Experts are warning that the hike in fuel duty taking place this week by 2.3 pence per litre could be the start of significant increases on the way as crude oil increases in cost and the reduced rate VAT is set to end. The RAC predict that pump prices could return to the levels of summer 2008 at around £1.20 litre. So if you are thinking of changing your car you should make sure that you take a close look at fuel consumption, there is no longer the clear distinction between petrol and diesel. By Graham Hill
Wednesday, 2. September 2009
Corporate Manslaughter has now become real with the announcement that the first trial, as a result of charges under the Corporate Manslaughter Act, will take place next February and should serve as a wake up call to businesses that think it could never happen to them. Cotswold Geotechnical Holdings have been charged for breaches of the Act along with breach of section 2 of the Health and Safety at Work Act following the death of junior geologist, Alexander Wright on 5th September 2008. Wright was Read more »
Tuesday, 1. September 2009
We are hopefully seeing some green shoots of economic recovery in various parts of the world. In the UK we paid off more than we borrowed last month for the first time ever and house prices are starting to rise but company closures and redundancies are still running at a high level and will probably do so for some time as we bump along waiting for the sustained upsurge in the UK and world economy. This means that many more of the population will continue to Read more »