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The electric vehicle homecharge scheme and workplace charging scheme have been confirmed for another year by the Office for Low Emissions Vehicles (OLEV).

It has also confirmed the continuation of the on street residential chargepoint scheme for another year.

From April 1, 2020, the grant will be set at £350 towards the cost of purchase and installation of a chargepoint at home through the electric vehicle homecharge scheme, and £350 towards a chargepoint socket at work through the workplace charging scheme. This is a reduction from £500.

Businesses are now allowed 40 sockets under the workplace charging scheme, up from 20.

The grant has also been extended to include larger electric motorbikes.

Local authorities can apply for a grant to cover part of the capital costs of installing chargepoints for residents who lack off-street parking. The grant rate will be set at £6,500 per chargepoint – extendable to £7,500 in certain circumstances.

To date, more than 120,000 domestic chargepoint installations have benefited from grants as well as more than 6,500 workplace installations, across the UK.

The Government says reducing the grant rate will enable more people to benefit from both schemes and provide better value for money for the taxpayer. By Graham Hill thanks to Fleet News

The Government has announced a series of measures to improve the safety of Smart Motorways, following a review commissioned by Transport Secretary Grant Shapps.

In October 2019, the future of Smart Motorways, which don’t have a hard shoulder and rely on cameras and signage for all-lane running, was called into question following an admission by Highways England that the dangers of removing the hard shoulder had not been fully investigated.

Today’s announcement secures the future of the roads, with an 18-point improvement plan (detailed below).

Analysis commissioned by the Transport Secretary reportedly found that “in most ways”, smart motorways are as safe as, or safer than, conventional ones.

The report highlights risks that are lower on smart motorways compared with conventional motorways; include tailgating, rapid changes of vehicle speeds, vehicles drifting off the carriageway and vehicles being driven too fast.

There was also an admission that some risks are higher than on conventional motorways, for example the risk of a collision between a moving and stationary vehicle.

In order to address these risks, the Transport Secretary’s new measures include abolishing confusing “dynamic hard shoulder” motorways and substantially speeding up the deployment of “stopped vehicle detection” – a radar-based system which spots stationary vehicles – so that it is installed across the entire smart motorway network within 36 months.

This will enable broken down drivers to typically be detected within 20 seconds, with lanes closed more quickly.

Shapps said: “I’ve been greatly concerned by a number of deaths on smart motorways, and moved by the accounts of families who’ve lost loved ones in these tragic incidents.

“I commissioned an urgent stocktake of smart motorways to provide a clearer picture of their safety and make recommendations on next steps. I envisaged it to be swift, but during the course of our investigations a complex picture emerged – which warranted further work.

“That work has now concluded and overall, evidence shows that in most ways smart motorways are as safe as or safer than conventional ones.

“But I am clear that there is more we can do to raise the bar on smart motorway safety. The extended package of measures I have set out will help rebuild public confidence in our motorway network and ensure that safety is firmly at the heart of the programme.”

The AA has commended the review, having spent a decade campaigning for improvements to the design and safety of Smart Motorways.

Edmund King, AA president, said: “The fact that 38% of breakdowns happen in live lanes on smart motorways means drivers have been at risk. Tragically people have lost their lives, and in some cases coroners have indicated this could have been avoided.

“No driver wants to be stuck in a live lane with nowhere to go; at best it is incredibly distressing, at worst it can be fatal.”

Anthony Smith, chief executive of the independent watchdog Transport Focus, added:

“We know road users are concerned about safety when they think what would happen if they broke down on a motorway with no hard shoulder. So we welcome this package of improvements including more technology to detect breakdowns quickly and for there to be extra effort to spread the word about what to do if you break down.

“We will be pressing Highways England further in two areas. First, to confirm that the M4 smart motorway, between Reading and Heathrow, will have additional safety features from day one. Second, to check that red ‘X’ gantries on all smart motorways are spaced appropriately so they can protect people if something goes wrong.”

The 18 points outlined in Shapp’s plan are:

• Abolishing the confusing “dynamic hard shoulder” smart motorways, where the hard shoulder operates only part-time and is a live running lane the rest of the time
• Substantially speeding up the deployment of “stopped vehicle detection” technology across the entire “all lane running” smart motorway network, so stopped vehicles can be detected and the lanes closed more quickly. Highways England is to accelerate its plans and install the technology within the next 36 months, setting a clear public timetable for the first time
• Faster attendance by more Highways England traffic officer patrols on smart motorways where the existing spacing between places to stop in an emergency is more than one mile, with the aim of reducing the attendance time from an average of 17 minutes to 10 minutes
• Reducing the distance between places to stop in an emergency to three quarters of a mile where feasible so that on future schemes motorists should typically reach one every 45 seconds at 60mph. The maximum spacing will be 1 mile
• Installing 10 additional emergency areas on the existing M25 smart motorways on the section of smart motorway with a higher rate of live lane stops and where places to stop in an emergency are furthest apart
• Considering a national programme to install more emergency areas where places to stop in an emergency are more than one mile apart
• Investigating M6 Bromford viaduct and the M1 at Luton, Sheffield and Wakefield where there is evidence of clusters of incidents. Where an intervention is considered likely to make a difference, we will look to make changes at these locations
• Making emergency areas more visible – all emergency areas will have a bright orange road surface, dotted lines on the surfacing showing where to stop, better and more frequent signs on approach and signs inside giving information on what to do in an emergency. These will be installed by the end of spring 2020
• More traffic signs giving the distance to the next place to stop in an emergency, so you will almost always be able to see a sign. Typically, these will be between approximately 330 and 440 yards apart
• More communication with drivers. We recognise that we could do more therefore we are committing to an additional £5m on national targeted communications campaigns to further increase awareness and understanding of smart motorways, how they work and how to use them confidently
• Displaying ‘report of obstruction’ messages automatically on electronic signs, triggered by the stopped vehicle detection system, to warn drivers of a stopped vehicle ahead, this is currently being trialled on the M25 and then a further trial on the M3
• Places to stop in an emergency shown on your satnav by working with satnav providers to ensure the locations are shown on the screen, when needed
• Making it easier to call for help if broken down by working with car manufacturers to improve awareness of the use of the eCall ‘SOS’ button in newer cars to call for help
• We have changed the law to enable automatic detection of ‘red X’ violations and enforcement using cameras and we will be expanding the upgrade of smart motorway cameras (HADECS) to identify more of those who currently ignore the ‘red X’. The penalty is 3 points on the driver’s licence and a £100 fine, or the driver can be referred to an awareness course
• An update of the Highway Code to provide more guidance
• Closer working with the recovery industry on training and procedures
• Reviewing existing emergency areas where the width is less than the current 15 foot wide standard. If feasible and appropriate we will widen to this standard
• A review of the use of red flashing lights to commence immediately. We have listened to the calls for recovery vehicles to be allowed to use red flashing lights. We will commence work immediately on a review.

By Graham Hill thanks to Fleet News

Fewer than half of van drivers use hands-free or Bluetooth technology to make calls, according to research conducted by Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles.

Van drivers make on average seven calls a day whilst driving and spend an average of 37 minutes on the phone for work each day however, only 41% of drivers use hands-free and Bluetooth technology on a frequent basis, according to a Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles survey.

Claire English, head of fleet at Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, said: “Mobile phone use behind the wheel is a topic that we’ve been monitoring over the past couple of years and the recent statistics show it’s still a huge safety problem on UK roads.

Despite carrying a hefty punishment, it lacks the taboo of other offences such as drink-driving and this needs to change.

Van drivers ignoring mobile phone laws risk getting a £200 fine and six penalty points on their licence.

According to the RAC Report on Motoring, 17% of drivers in the UK admitted to sending and receiving texts, checking e-mails or posting on social media while driving. Last year, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles revealed 23% of drivers do not have hands-free kit in their van.

The Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles research also revealed that van drivers in London, Yorkshire and the Humber, and the North East are most likely to dial using the handsfree-technology while Scottish van drivers are twice as likely to give hands-free a miss compared to any other region.

Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles offers a Bluetooth hands-free kit as standard across its entire model range. English said: “As part of our Working With You promise, we’re committed to improving safety on UK roads for both our customers and other road users, always ensuring we provide the right equipment for the job, for example offering Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB) and a handsfree kit as standard across the range.”  By Graham Hill thanks to Fleet News

While 2020 got off to a strong start with demand from Britain’s car dealers keeping wholesale values of used cars above the usual seasonal levels, and the strongest February since 2012, the market is now showing signs of weakness.

As you would expect, we are keeping a very close, daily, eye on retail footfall, auction attendance and prices in the trade and retail data. Today (23/3/2020) the values in Live are down 1.5% since last month on average, but there has been a marked change in the market since the beginning of last week.

There is the likelihood that demand will continue to decline, and with it, values in the short term. Our forecasting team is currently predicting values to drop by more than the seasonal norm over the coming weeks.

Our short-term forecasts for the coming months will be worse than otherwise would have been the case, as the effects of COVID-19 continue to be felt.

At present, our longer-term forecasts for one to five years in the future are likely to remain broadly unchanged, as we wait to see longer-term impacts on new car registrations, especially following plant closures from many manufacturers.

A fall in registrations this year could help support used values in the long term, and there are also a great many other factors which could yet influence values in various directions.

The automotive industry is navigating uncharted waters, and the coming months will provide an unprecedented challenge as the UK has to adapt to new ways of working, socialising and shopping.

To keep customers informed on a fast-moving market Cap HPI is reviewing daily data feeds that are received from trade and retail sources, and the changes reflected accordingly.

The team of experienced industry experts is supported by data analysts and scientists who ensure that the data is reflected in all valuation products. Our Business Continuity Plan has been enacted and our valuation services will continue to function as normal.

Be assured that values are set by Cap HPI using an unrivalled breadth of data sources, big data technology and a team of editors who scrutinise trends and movements in the market in real-time.

The team of experts is supported by data analysis and audit managers, who ensure the quality of the data.

As a call to action, I would encourage all customers to use the data and tools at their disposal. The market is changing daily, and situations such as this are the reason Cap Live was developed.  By Graham Hill Thanks To Fleet News

FleetCheck has added coronavirus symptoms to its Vehicle Inspection App’s fit-to-drive section.

The app is designed to increase fleet safety for cars, vans, HGVs, buses and coaches and is widely used, having been used to complete two million checks.

Peter Golding, managing director at FleetCheck, said: “The fit-to-drive declaration is an essential part of the app as well as fundamental fleet risk management itself. It means that a driver is making a declaration each day that they consider themselves OK to work.

“Clearly, when we’re all dealing with something as contagious as coronavirus, this takes on a whole new dimension, especially as many of the fleets still working on a daily basis are home delivery companies that are dealing with the public.”

The new, coronavirus-based declaration that FleetCheck has written and made available to our customers aims to provide a simple and easy reminder for drivers of the symptoms that they are likely to be experiencing if infected, says Golding.

The Vehicle Inspection App was introduced in April 2017 and creates the means for drivers and fleet managers to schedule, carry out, confirm, follow-up and audit all kinds of legally-required inspections from daily walkarounds to weekly or monthly checks.

It has been continually enhanced, notably to incorporate a range of features such as support for languages commonly used among UK fleet drivers, the fit-to-drive declaration, enhanced damage, defect and collision reporting and shift recording.

A new, streamlined version of the app, called FleetCheck Driver, was launched earlier this year and provides a simplified solution for fleets that currently have no risk management measures in place.

Golding said: “Last week, as an example, 170,000 checks were undertaken using the app so it is no exaggeration to say that the fit-to-drive declaration could help to play a useful part in stopping the spread of the virus among and by drivers.”  By Graham Hill Thanks To Fleet News

The following information is guidance provided by the Government. During the MOT 6 month exemption period you must ensure that the vehicle is still roadworthy and safe to drive.

You’re responsible for making sure your vehicle is always safe to drive (‘roadworthy’). It can be unsafe even if you have a current MOT certificate.

You can be fined up to £2,500, be banned from driving and get 3 penalty points for driving a vehicle in a dangerous condition.

Checks you should carry out

Every time you drive you should check:

• the windscreen, windows and mirrors are clean
• all lights work
• the brakes work

Your vehicle’s handbook will tell you how often to check the:

• engine oil
• water level in the radiator or expansion tank
• brake fluid level
• battery
• windscreen and rear window washer bottles – top up with windscreen washer fluid if necessary
• tyres – they must have the correct tread depth and be free of cuts and defects

The handbook will also tell you when your vehicle needs to be serviced.

Tyre tread

Tread must be a certain depth depending on the type of vehicle:

• cars, light vans and light trailers – 1.6 millimetres (mm)
• motorcycles, large vehicles and passenger-carrying vehicles – 1mm

Mopeds only need to have visible tread.

There must be tread across the middle three-quarters and around the entire tyre.

By Graham Hill – reprinted from Government website

Drivers will be granted a six-month exemption from MOT testing, allowing people to carry on with essential travel, the Department for Transport (DfT) has announced.

Cars, motorcycles and vans will be granted a MOT exemption that will enable essential travel to work where it cannot be done from home, or shop for necessities.

All cars, motorcycles and vans that require a MOT test will be exempt from needing a test from March 30. The Department for Transport (DfT) urges that vehicles must be kept in a roadworthy condition as drivers could face prosecution if they are driving unsafe vehicles.

This 6 month extension has caused concern with the IGA who say that the current MOT failure rate is 31%, which means that nearly 10 million vehicles do not meet even the basic roadworthiness level of compliance. DVSA warns drivers that their car must stay roadworthy and that fines can be issued for up to £2,500 (with a ban and 3 points) for driving a vehicle in a dangerous condition.

The DfT advises that people should stay at home and avoid travel. The only reasons people should leave their homes is set out in the government guidance.

Transport secretary, Grant Shapps, said: “We must ensure those on the frontline of helping the nation combat COVID19 are able to do so.

“Allowing this temporary exemption from vehicle testing will enable vital services such as deliveries to continue, frontline workers to get to work, and people get essential food and medicine.

“Safety is key, which is why garages will remain open for essential repair work.”

Legislation will be introduced on March 30 and will come into immediate effect for 12 months. Drivers will still need to get their vehicle tested until the new regulations come into place, if they need to use it. Garages will remain open for essential repair work.

If vehicle owners cannot get an MOT as they are in self-isolation, the DfT says it is working with insurers and the police to ensure people aren’t unfairly penalised for things out of their control.

“The temporary MoT exemption is positive as it will allow vital services to continue and aftersales workshops to prioritise essential repair works on critical vehicles”, said Sue Robinson, director of the National Franchised Dealers Association (NFDA), which represents franchised car and commercial vehicle retailers in the UK.

“We welcome the transport secretary’s comments that ‘safety is key’ and aftersales departments will remain open for essential repair work.”

Karen Hilton, chief commercial officer at HeyCar, believes granting the six-month exemption from MOT testing is the right thing to do. She said: “We’re really pleased with the news that MOTs have been scrapped for at least six months. We’ve had queries from concerned customers about what they should do, as taking their car for an MOT seems to conflict with the Government advice to stay at home. People have enough worries in this time of crisis without having to consider how they get their car in for MOT.

“Scrapping the MOT for all vehicles while the country goes through the coronavirus lockdown is the only sensible approach, removing risk for motorists and mechanics alike.

“This isn’t business as usual, we are all being told to stay indoors unless absolutely necessary and while the MOT is vital for all vehicles, especially older ones from a safety point of view, it’s just another one of those appointments that will now have to wait in order to protect the health of the community.

“Many mechanics are small businesses who will be hit hard by the loss of income. There is sure to be a wave of motorists who need an MOT once the exemption is lifted.”

To be clear, the Government are currently saying that MOT Centres and garages can stay open after 30 March but obviously all the advice re social distancing should continue to be followed so that means:

• Taking contactless payments (the limit goes up to £45 from £30 on 1 April 2020)
• Not printing MOT certificates
• Keeping customers and staff at least 2 meters apart
• Remind employees and customers to wash their hands for as long as it takes to watch Son Heung-Min score and celebrate his wonder goal against Burney in December
• Clean and disinfect objects and surfaces that are touched regularly
• Use seat covers and disposable gloves

By Graham Hill thanks to various contributors.

Millions of motorists have been ripped off in a £150million delivery scheme to inflate the price of new cars, it is claimed.

Eight in ten new cars have seen price increases of up to £60 after shipping firms conspired to fix delivery costs, according to a lawsuit.

A total of 17million cars are said to have been affected over ten years. Now lawyers are to launch a US-style ‘class action’ against five of the world’s biggest shipping firms to try to win money back for consumers.

Customers affected include those who bought from Ford, Vauxhall, Volkswagen, Peugeot, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Toyota, Citroen and Renault, between October 2006 and September 2015.

At the heart of the case is a line near the end of every customer’s new-car bill which reads: ‘Plus delivery.’

The exact amount of ‘overpayment’ owed per customer will vary based on how far the car may have travelled, including from the Far East and the US.

The maximum overpayment is £60 with an average of about £9 per car. But if a family has bought or leased a number of new cars over the decade the sums quickly add up, according to legal firm Scott+Scott which is bringing the action.

The ‘class action’ – a group legal suit under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 – has been filed in the Competition Appeal Tribunal on behalf of consumers and businesses who purchased or leased new cars and vans between 2006 and 2015.

In 2018, EU watchdogs found the five shipping firms guilty of running an anti-competitive price-fixing cartel – and fined them £330million.

They ruled that the firms had coordinated tenders, allocated customers, conspired on capacity reductions, and exchanged commercially sensitive pricing information to maintain or increase shipping prices.

All the companies had acknowledged their involvement and agreed to settle the cases, watchdogs said.

The shippers were caught out by a so-called ‘ratters’ charter’ which gives immunity to the first member of any cartel to blow the whistle on their partners. This gives guilty firms an incentive to ‘rat’ first on the others to avoid hefty fines.

Lawyers say car-makers are not the guilty parties, pointing out that they too were outraged by the rip-off.

The five companies are Japanese carriers MOL, K Line, and NYK, Sweden’s WWL/EUKOR, and Chile’s CSAV. Although not household names, their role in moving cars around the world is huge.

The case is being led by Mark McLaren, formerly of consumers’ group Which? A pre-trial hearing is expected in the autumn.

He said: ‘When UK consumers and businesses purchased or leased a new car, they paid more for the delivery than they should have done… I strongly believe that compensation should be paid when consumers are harmed by such deliberate, unlawful conduct.’

David Scott, of Scott+Scott, said: ‘Consumers and businesses who bought or leased a new Ford, Volkswagen, Peugeot, BMW, Mercedes or Toyota, for example, are owed money.’

He added: ‘Just because these international shipping companies aren’t household names shouldn’t mean that they are able to get away with it.’

If the ‘class action’ case is won anyone who bought an affected car will be automatically entitled to money back. All they need to do is provide their details and proof of purchase or lease and they will get paid.

The shippers have already been hit be penalties beyond the EU, including Australia, China, Japan and the US.  By Graham Hill thanks to the Daily Mail

Vehicles will be diverted away from pollution hotspots by signs that react in real-time to increases in harmful emissions.

The technology will be trialled in the Central Bedfordshire Council region thanks to a new network of 24 air pollution sensors.

The network, which has been installed by Westcotec in partnership with Airly, provides open-access, real-time air quality information via an online live map link.

Speaking at the launch of the network at the Move urban mobility exhibition in London, last month, Central Bedfordshire Council senior road safety engineer, Tim Oxley, set out the opportunities now available to reduce exposure to high levels of pollution.

“This project provides a significant step forward in relation to the action we can take when air pollution levels are high,” he said.

“We previously had to wait for data, meaning we were unable to make on-the-spot interventions. Now, by integrating the real-time data with other roadside technology, we can take immediate action that will reduce exposure to high levels of air pollution – steps such as putting traffic diversions in place.”

Oxley believes the real-time sensors provide an “excellent opportunity” to be proactive in dealing with air pollution and to minimise its impact on people.

He says the council has a number of initiatives planned, thanks to the new network, including projects with schools, monitoring pollution from buses and traffic diversions using vehicle-activated signs when air quality levels require.

Westcotec, which specialises in vehicle-activated signs and traffic safety systems, is monitoring the air quality levels and developing future signage to work in conjunction with the air quality reading.

The first sign showing live pollution data was expected revealed at a trade show in Amsterdam planned for April.

Westcotec head of sales and marketing Olly Samways explained: “We have always been interested by pollution rate against traffic flows and speeds.

“As a step on from monitoring, being able to reduce the actual amount of pollutants when a high level is reached was an even larger area of interest. We regularly install over-height and flood monitoring devices that divert vehicles so this would work in a similar way.”

The technology has the potential for local authorities to focus their efforts on those specific areas which require action, rather than the blanket restrictions imposed by clean air zones (CAZs).

Oxley told Fleet News the level of interest from other local authorities in the technology had been “extremely high”.

Central Bedfordshire Council was keen to get involved in the trial after learning Westcotec was looking for a test bed for the technology.

In terms of how the air pollution signs will work, Samways explained that the data can be sourced using the open API.

“When a pre-determined figure is reached, an alert can be sent through the internet to a 4G modem within the sign, which can enable the sign to display such messages as ‘HGV DIVERT AHEAD’ together with directional arrows,” he said.

“We can create diversion signage that will only trigger when pollution levels are high, and which will guide specific categories of vehicle – such as heavy goods vehicles and buses – away from at-risk areas at these times.”

The technology trial in Bedfordshire comes as Coventry City Council announced it would not be introducing a CAZ, after receiving Government support for an alternative emissions reduction plan.

It includes vehicle restrictions on specific roads, new cycle routes, electric buses and changes to road layouts.

A £1 million scrappage scheme will also be trialled in Coventry next year, with motorists given up to £3,000 worth of mobility credits to ditch their car.

The credits will be provided on a smartphone app through which participants will also be able to plan and book their journeys.

Later in the year, Transport for West Midlands (TfWM) will invite people, who are willing to give up their cars, to apply for the two-year pilot project.

TfWM, part of the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), is working up the detail of the scheme ahead of its launch.

The trial is funded from the £22m Future Mobility Zone grant to the region by the Department for Transport (DfT) to develop and test new transport technology and schemes. By Graham Hill thanks to Fleet News

A new study has revealed that in-vehicle infotainment systems are impairing reactions times behind the wheel more than alcohol and cannabis use.

Stopping distances, lane control and response to external stimuli were all negatively affected by the use of Android Auto and Apple CarPlay in a new study by TRL and IAM Roadsmart.

Among the results, the study found that reaction times at motorway speeds increased average stopping distances to between four and five car lengths.

The study also found that drivers took their eyes off the road for as long as 16 seconds while driving (equivalent to a distance of more than 500 metres at 70 mph), and using touch control resulted in reaction times that were even worse than texting while driving.

Neil Greig, policy and research director at IAM RoadSmart, said: “Driver distraction is estimated to be a factor in around a third of all road collisions in Europe each year.

“While previous research indicates that Apple CarPlay and Android Auto perform better than more traditional buttons and controls, the results from this latest study raise some serious concerns about the development and use of the latest in-vehicle infotainment systems. Anything that distracts a driver’s eyes or mind from the road is bad news for road safety.

“We’re now calling on industry and government to openly test and approve such systems and develop consistent standards that genuinely help minimise driver distraction.”

During the study, drivers completed a series of three drives on the same simulated test route to assess the level of impact of Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. On the first run, drivers did not interact with the system. On subsequent runs, drivers interacted with the system using voice control only and then using touch control only.

Both methods of control were found to significantly distract drivers, however touchscreen control proved the more distracting of the two.

While many drivers realised the system was causing a distraction and modified their behaviour by, for example, slowing down, performance was still adversely affected with drivers unable to maintain a constant distance to the vehicle in front, reacting more slowly to sudden occurrences and deviating outside of their lane.

“Individuals driving for work are just as at risk as the general public, so we would also encourage employers to review their advice and policies in light of this research,” added Greig.