Low Cost Vans

Honda promises Electronic Vehicles (EV's), that charge in 15 minutes by 2022. Currently most 30 minute charges, re-charge to about 80%. Drivers seeking to transition to an EV will be pleased of the governments vast investment into strengthening the provisions of electric charge points across the UK. In order to meet a faster charge duration, Honda are looking to create a new battery collaboration. They hope faster charging and longer driving ranges will make the EV market more appealing and accessible to mass market. I wonder how many other manufacturers will heed the faster re-charge race and have faster charge times in future? It certainly seems the EV market will be fast expanding in the next seven years, past 2022 towards other 2025 targets. View the Low Cost Vans Electric Hybrid Range here:  http://www.lowcostvans.co.uk/electric-vans.aspx Ref:  Shane McGlaun.Slash Gear. 

UK drone users are likely to have to sit drone tests when new legislation comes into place next year. The proposed bill - set to be published March 2018 - suggests owners of drones weighing more than 250g will have to register and sit a test. In the meantime - THE DRONE CODE - already exists. Failure to fly responsibly may result in criminal prosecution. What do you think with regards to drone delivery future and van roof-top drone stations? Drone Code Link            Ref BBC News (26th Dec 2017) : http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-42126150        

You may feel like you don’t have a moment spare in the busy morning dash, but be sure to save a few minutes to de-ice your car window legally. Yes I did say legally… Little did I know until reading a recent news article , that poor windscreen defrosting management can actually mean you’re breaking the law. Confused? Well it makes sense when you think about it… What do many people do to warm their car up and thereby defrost their windows? Get the engine running! This is fine in itself of course, the problem is when people leave their keys in the car while the engine is running and go back in the house to finish breakfast/pack a school lunch/look for a lost library book. Leaving your car with the engine running on a public highway breaks Rule 123 of the Highway Code. Alongside that, you don’t stand much chance on the insurance if someone decides they fancy driving your car to work instead of theirs that day. The other way to break the law and end up receiving a fine at the start of the d...

Love or hate your local council, you’re kind of stuck with them and their ideas. Enter the people of Bournemouth and their local council’s drive to reduce congestion by offering prizes to people who commute by car sharing, walking, cycling etc. It’s a six-week challenge lasting from 11September to 21 October and individuals or businesses can sign up. Apparently, the traffic in the area is so bad that it’s possible that it could come to a standstill if the problem gets worse. So, to incentive the locals to do something about it, commuters will record their trips to and from work, with weekly prizes including iPads, Apple watches and cinema tickets. And those companies that do the best will get a £5,000 grant to go towards improving/creating a ‘sustainable travel infrastructure’ at their work. As is often the case, scroll to the comments section of the local online story on this and residents are giving their thoughts about the challenge: “Get rid of pointless traffic lights…” or “we hav...

Working for Low Cost Vans it’s no surprise that I feel a certain affinity for van drivers on the road; even if I am passing them in my convertible. But at this time of year if I see a big distribution van going past, I am even more interested in where they’re going and what they’ve been up to that day. Around 260 million parcels were delivered around November and December last year as Christmas shoppers decided to leave their own four wheels at home and shop from their armchair. It’s high demand and it’s not so much the vans I’m worried about, it’s the drivers. Earlier this year a BBC reporter went uncover as a driver at Amazon where he was told that drivers are expected to deliver up to 200 parcels a day. Not only was the workload intense, the reporter said he received the equivalent of £4.76 a month during his second week there - nowhere near the minimum wage. Of course this doesn’t mean that all drivers for distribution companies are facing bad conditions, but the change in the way...

2017 will not only commemorate our 20 th anniversary, but also marks the introduction of the updated practical driving test in the UK. Let me provide you with the ins-and-outs of the proposed new driving test, as stated by the Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) in a report published last month. Why the change? The new and improved driving test has been administered in an attempt to reduce road traffic collisions, both in general and involving new drivers. This is following a report undertaken in 2012 showing a fifth of those injured or killed in road accidents were involving a driver aged between 17 and 24 years old. In addition to that, a quarter of the deaths of 15 to 19 year olds can be attributed to road accidents – the biggest killer of that age group. Another reason for the adaptations is the increase of in-car technological advancements like satellite navigational systems. The changes aim to keep up with the technologies that are used in modern vehicles. The DVSA stat...

With state-of-the-art 360° vision already proving its worth in trucks and cars, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) says it’s likely to be vans up next. Already popular in car safety and driver assistance systems, as well as in the HGV market, 360° cameras now look set to take off in the rapidly growing LCV market. What’s driving the trend? With a record four million vans now on our roads and increasing calls for operators to be fully accountable for fleets, especially in the burgeoning home delivery sector, on-board imaging could soon be seen as essential for both road safety and fleet monitoring purposes. 360° vision – reverse sensors on steroids… Pretty much! The on-board imaging market has advanced rapidly from reversing sensors, through to reversing cameras, with the introduction of dash-mounted screens along the way. And that’s just at the rear of the vehicle. Vehicle-mounted cameras have multiplied and are now found not just at the front, but also at the sides ...

In the last five years there have been over 40,000 cases of number plate theft in the UK according to a study by the AA. Yet a lot more cases go unreported. Why? It is mainly because people do not panic immediately if they see a missing number plate. Well, that is until the parking fines and speeding fines start landing on the doormat. Number plates are stolen for a number of reasons, but mainly because they can be used to change the identity of a stolen car or to disguise cars that will be used for criminal activity. Luckily, there are a number of ways you can protect yourself against number plate theft and car cloning. New number plates Several plate manufacturers along with the DVLA have developed a standard for theft resistant number plates. It can take up to three minutes for these plates to be removed, which although may not seem like a long time, in that three minutes they could be caught red-handed trying to steal yours. Anti-theft screws Many local police forces now have anti-...

On June 23, voters will take to the polls to decide if Britain should remain within the European Union. There has been a lot of mudslinging from both the Vote Leave and the Vote Stay camps, and no doubt things will continue to get messier as the referendum looms ever closer. What does it mean for the fleet industry? We will not know the true effects of leaving the EU unless a leave vote is returned in June, and even then it could take months to see the effect. However, there has already been a lot of talk about what would happen to the fleet industry if we do leave, and it has the potential to be extremely costly for everyone. So what could happen if we do leave? Tariff increases Currently, because we are part of the EU vehicles and vehicle parts can be imported and exported around the work without tariffs which helps with costs of manufacturing. Voting to leave the EU could mean that we lose the no tariff perk and we could see tariffs of up to 10 per cent. This could see fleet custome...

Some of you may know that sinking feeling when you hurtle past a mobile speed camera, failing to see it until it’s too late. Most of us can attest to feeling nervous for a good two weeks following driving past a speed camera. Did we get the speed limit wrong? Is our speedometer accurate? Now, technology has made it possible to throw another nasty surprise through your letterbox. Working from up to one kilometre away, mobile speed cameras have had a tech boost and can now catch other offences such as using your phone, and neglecting to wear a seatbelt. Other drivers can be quite forceful when refusing to wear a seatbelt, and it’s a requirement I am always quite keen on enforcing. The argument I always face is that it’s not an enforceable law. Actually, as I keep telling them, it is. As well as being illegal, it is also highly reckless and dangerous to anyone in a vehicle. Children, grandparents, and even your dog are all at risk without a seatbelt. So what are the laws around seatbelts?...

We all value our privacy. We all like some things to stay within the four walls of our home, and we don’t like the idea of people nosing around through our drawers. We’re all aware that websites collect sensitive information, and understandably, we are quite cautious about it. Occasionally, websites are restricted as to what data they can capture from its readers online, just like mobile phone companies are restricted to what data it can obtain from its customers. Now, with drivers across Europe connecting their phones to their van or car whilst out on the road, the European Parliament has made the decision to adopt new rules that will protect the privacy of those who chose to connect to their vehicle. The new rules will now mean that people can choose to restrict their personal data when connecting to a vehicle. The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has stated that where individuals can be identified by things such as GPS information constitutes as personal data, and having a ...

Back in January, I discussed the possibility of a new practical driving test in the future. It wasn't a huge game changer, but merely looked at components of the existing test to see how it could be bettered. It now seems that we may see a whole new test but not for those who drive manual vehicles. The automated and fully autonomous vehicles are now being put under the proverbial microscope before they have even left the production line. The European Transport Safety Council (ETSC) has reported that EU rules on safety approvals for new cars have to include tests for automated and fully autonomous vehicles before they should be allowed to go on sale to the public. Obviously the aim of this is to verify the safety of vehicles that aren't driven by humans but also so that the cars are able to follow the different road rules across Europe. Although we are beginning to race ahead with automotive technology, people are still apprehensive about how these ‘driverless’ vehicles will beh...

When out perusing the aisles of a car showroom there are often certain questions that fall from our mouths whilst we attempt to find a new vehicle. Does it have in-built sat-nav? Does it come with connected Bluetooth? Does it have parking sensors and cruise control? Although some of these questions are perfectly normal, others (such as ones that involve connecting our phones) hide a deeper notion that we are becoming more attracted to connected technology in our vehicles rather than its ability to get us from point A to point B. This leads to a lapse in memory among drivers, as we start to forget about the lingering dangers of technology. Last week, I looked at the problem with hands-free devices and whether or not they really were safe, and this week I will be looking at another guilty party - the trusty sat-nav. Studies have shown that using connected technology factored into over 300,000 accidents, and road safety charity Brake, found that 15% of drivers using a sat-nav have made il...

We all know that driving needs a lot of concentration, but many of us are guilty of slipping into auto pilot. Driving is something that requires all of our attention and there are so many things we need to watch out for: a vehicle pulling out without indicating, a change in speed limit, traffic queues, delayed braking by the vehicle in front and accidents on the road. So why do something that would distract us from this? Thousands of drivers across the UK are guilty of calling someone from the car, whether it be hands-free or not (which is illegal). Unfortunately, not everyone is aware of the very real danger of hands-free devices. We Brits are not the only guilty ones. In America there has been an increase in the number of deaths because of driver distractions such as mobile phones, both hands-free and hand-held and nearly 30% of all crashes involve a mobile phone. Why is using a hand-held mobile phone illegal, but hands-free is not? The main issue is not being in control of your vehi...

Chances are you might know someone who has ‘accidentally on purpose’ smashed their phone to get the latest upgrade purely because it comes in rose gold, or has a better camera lens than its predecessor. Some car owners have initiated the same practice in order to get a quick buck. It may sound like a good idea on paper but the reality is far from that, with devastating consequences beginning to ripple out across the whole motor industry. Crash for Cash scams are not just effecting innocent drivers across the UK as I explained in my blog a few weeks ago. Smaller van hire companies across the country are potentially at risk of having to fold because of the overall cost of these bogus accidents. Several business owners in the North West of England, a region that currently sits in the top ten worst places for the scam, are paying tens of thousands of pounds to settle this fraudulent claims, and some of the smaller lease hire companies are going bust because they just cannot afford the ofte...

Most drivers will assume their insurance allows them to drive another car, yet the truth is they actually don’t know. I myself still have to ask when I renew mine if I am allowed to get behind the wheel of a car that isn't mine. You see, it used to be that years ago, as long as you had fully comprehensive cover on your vehicle you could drive another with third party, fire and theft cover. Well this most certainly is not the case anymore. So what has changed? Some insurers will now allow you to pay extra to have cover to drive another car in an emergency, but it is done on a case by case basis. This means you might not be entitled to extra cover. Several other insurers however are just getting rid of it completely and if you think you may have to drive another car such as your spouses, no matter how brief, you need to have separate insurance on that vehicle instead. For those young drivers out there, it is almost a guaranteed no that you will not even have the option to pay extra t...

Cars break down all the time it is an unfortunate fact of life for those who drive. You may be one of the lucky ones who have never had to deal with a breakdown, but here are the top reasons why cars will be breaking down in 2016. Filling up with the wrong petrol or just no fuel at all Year on year this always appears on the list of reasons why people break down. If you don’t know if your car is petrol or diesel check the car manual! If however you do end up filling up at the wrong pump and you realise before you drive off then call your breakdown provider and get it drained before you switch on the engine because it could so some serious damage. Also – try to never drive below a quarter of a tank of petrol because running out of petrol is right up there with filling up with the wrong one. Getting a puncture You should check your tyres often especially if you drive quite a lot. Look for a tear in the wheel itself and look at the tyre pressure as well. All of these can lead to the tyre ...

You hear a horrible popping noise and the car starts to veer. You have popped a tyre and if you are anything like me your first thought will be ‘but I don’t know how to change a tyre on my own.’ This is normally followed by a panicked phone call to whoever handles my breakdown cover! But what are the essential skills that really every driver should have? Changing a tyre When you purchase a car you should have either a spare tyre in the boot or a tyre repair kit. You should also keep a kit that has a wrench, a jack and a block. Auto Trader have a great graphic on how to change a tyre which you can find here: http://bit.ly/1nMMkJ6 Jumping a battery It happens. It can be something like leaving your heater on or your lights (all of which drain the battery). As long as you have the right cables and someone else’s car to piggy back off it should not be too much hassle to get back on the road.  Make sure that you follow the instructions on the cables to the letter as you get a literal shock. ...

2015 saw one of the biggest crash for cash scams in Britain take place in Blackwood Wales. More than 80 people were convicted of insurance fraud, costing the insurance industry nearly £1 million. A family had staged accidents for other relatives and friends enabling them to make bogus insurance claims, which saw air-bags removed from the cars to make it seem like a crash had really happened. Luckily it did not take place on public roads but at a repair garage. This is not something to be taken lightly. Just because someone thinks they are staging an accident in a safe environment it doesn't mean they or anyone else are safe. All it would take is one wrong move and it could become a fatality or a serious injury – all because they wanted pay-outs. There are also people who will cause accidents in a crash for cash scams on the main roads, so when you are driving you need to be alert as they target vulnerable drivers such as the elderly, who may not argue back when someone is saying th...

The legal drink drive limit I for one believe that if you intend to drive then you should not drink at all as alcohol has different effects on different people. However, not everyone knows what the actual limit is. It is hard to say what it is in units or amount of drink because it is measured in the breath and the blood. If someone is caught with over 35 micrograms of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath, or 80 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres. Know your limits drivers. If you feel tipsy, put the keys away and call a taxi. Middle lane hogging In 2015 a van driver became the first person to be prosecuted for hogging the middle lane. It is actually against the law to do so and you could end up with a fine and three points on your license if you are prosecuted. Car tax With the scrapping of the paper tax disc came a new law. Did you know it is illegal to sell a vehicle with its car tax? When a car is sold, the tax has to be cancelled and the new owner has to tax the car from scr...