Hints & Tips
Car Tax Increases
People who own a 4x4 vehicle or "luxury" car have been hit in the pocket the most, with their cost of petrol rising from £11,188 in 2007 to £13,346 in 2008.
Much of the increase in 4x4 vehicles comes from higher road tax, which has almost doubled to £400. Motoring groups claim that the price hike is not only affecting those who are able to afford these type of cars, as many less affluent people living in rural areas rely on the 4x4 all weather vehicles to get around their community, and as part of their daily lives. The AA has urged the Government to re-think retrospective road tax and abolish their controversial proposal to introduce a 2p per litre duty on fuel.
Cutting Cost of Car Insurance
www.onlyinsurance.com/Car-Insurance/Money-Saving-Tips-for-Car-Insurance.aspx- Buy wisely - If you haven't bought a car yet or are looking for a new one consider the engine size and cost which influence car insurance premium costs. Avoid buying large and sporty cars with powerful engines. The idea of making you car look like it came from the future seems like a great idea, but if your premium concerns you it probably isn't. Do not upgrade or modify your car (beyond security) otherwise your premium will be more expensive.
- What are you willing to pay? - Pay for the small claims out of your own pocket. Claiming money for expenses that you could afford can drive up your premium needlessly and threaten your no claims bonus.
- Improve your security - Insurers will base your premium, in part, on the results your model of car got on a test of its security. They test the doors, alarm system, ignition lock and immobilisers, in their attempt to grade the make of car. Cars which are deemed to be higher in risk will naturally carry a greater premium. You can also store the car in a garage or park it in a driveway, as if your insurer knows you do this, they may lower your premium.
- Improve your driving - Some insurers will provide you with a discount if you agree to take additional driving courses.
- Drive less - The less mileage you have on your car, the less expensive your premium should be.
- No claims discount - A no claims discount gives you massive savings (as much as 70%), so long as you've not made any claims in the past. Even if you have, the only claims that count against you are fault claims. Non-fault claims do not affect your no claims bonus.
- Voluntary excess - Paying higher voluntary excess can greatly lower your premium.
Congestion Charge
www.tfl.gov.uk/cclondon/If you pay the charge on the day of travel you pay £8.
If you pay the charge on the first charging day after travel you pay £10.
Discounts are eligible for certain categories of drivers or people:
- Residents
- Blue Badge holders
- Organisations
- Vehicles:
- Alternative fuel vehicles
- Electrically propelled vehicles
- Vehicles with nine or more seats
- Motor tricycles
- Roadside recovery vehicles
Certain types of vehicles are automatically exempt and do not need to be registered with us who - Hastings Direct?:
- Two wheeled motorbikes (and sidecars), mopeds and bicycles
- Black cabs licensed with the Public Carriage Office (PCO)
- Mini cabs licensed with the PCO
- Emergency Service vehicles - e.g. ambulances / fire engines, NHS vehicles that are exempt from road tax
- Vehicles used by the disabled that are exempt from vehicle excise duty (road tax) under the "disabled" class
- Vehicles for more than one disabled person exempt from road tax
- Public transport vehicles with nine or more seats, that are listed within the taxation classes Buses or Reduced Pollution Buses
Saving on fuel cost & consumption - drive Economically to reduce the cost of your car insurance
One of the main ways drivers can save money on fuel costs is to drive economically. Below are the Top 10 Tips that drivers can consider to help reduce fuel consumption and CO2 emissions:
- Avoid sharp acceleration and heavy braking to reduce the amount of fuel being used.
- Tyre pressure - under-inflated tyre causes resistance, which increases fuel consumption by up to 3%. Driving with your windows open can also create unnecessary drag, increasing fuel consumption.
- Keep within speed limits to save on the amount of fuel your car burns e.g. driving at 85mph rather then 70mph uses 25% more fuel.
- Plan journeys to avoid congestion, road works or getting lost. Satellite Navigation Systems are becoming increasing popular for planning journeys.
- Remove additional weight in car to reduce fuel consumption, e.g. take off roof racks when they are not in use as they increase drag and fuel consumption.
- Avoid "stop and start" driving. If in traffic jams, turn the engine off. This will reduce fuel consumption and car emissions.
- Don't leave the car unattended with your engine running, for example on a cold day, wasting fuel to heat the engine - drive away immediately instead.
- 1.4 litre engines or smaller use less fuel and also benefit from cheaper road tax.
- Avoid short journeys, which can be walked instead - cold engines use nearly twice the amount of fuel.
- Use air-conditioning sparingly and this relies on the engine to be running and fuel being consumed.
Economical driving can lead to lower bills, lower maintenance and lower insurance costs.
www.est.org.uk/transport
www.dft.gov.uk
Telematic Systems
- reduce co2 and tailpipe emissions
- reduce mileage and fuel costs - Sat Nav to identify most direct route
- monitors driving efficiency - acceleration, braking, speed
- traffic congestion notification
Electric Cars
- exempt from road tax
- exempt from congestion charge
- lower emissions
- soon coming to Britain = fuel cell cars