Are bikers beyond the law?

At odds with this morning’s glorious weather and my feeling great, I read that an organisation called EuroRap has just published figures to say that Britain is doing less than other parts of Europe to reduce the risk of road accidents.

By establishing a benchmark accident formula, they say that some 1 in 4 British motorways don’t meet their standards and almost 1 in 3 have worse than 62 serious or fatal accidents per billion kilometres.

One of the worst roads is apparently the eight mile stretch of road between Macclesfield and Buxton the A537; a single carriageway where there has been 43 fatal or serious collisions in the last 7 years, three-quarters of which involved motorcyclists.

This got me thinking. Where I live in Sussex our summer Sunday morning lie-ins are interrupted by the ear-piercing sounds as bikes whizz by on our village bypass. Very, very fast.

As a community, we have complained to the police about this but nothing seems to be done. Certainly there is no police presence in evidence where needed. Perhaps they can’t catch them - but surely they could deter them by either being there or using the dreaded speed cameras…

The British Road Safety Foundation talks about the need for more barriers to stop cars ploughing into trees or building new lanes to make overtaking safer but neither of these seem to address the fact that the casualties may be bikers.

Whilst I keep my eyes open for motoring messages, I seem to have missed specific PR campaigns for bikers reminding them how fragile life and their machines are.

What more can be done?

Is there a ‘carrot’ message or must it all be ’stick’? Are speed limiters legal, for example?

I remember reading that more bikes failed their first MOT than cars - are they roadworthy or is it mainly rider error? And are these biker casualties young riders or second childhood O50s with money to spare.

The marketing message woulod need to be a different one for each.

FOXY Steph

What can you expect for £75?

On behalf of the motorist and after so many years in the making, FOXY had hoped for a more demanding code of practice; one that aspired to greatness for a change, not just the same old minimum business standards including an ‘accessible and robust dispute resolution’ system.
Had the benchmark standard been set higher, I feel sure that the number of complaints would start to fall proportionately.

All in all, I am disappointed.

The new Motor Industry Code of Practice for Service and Repair, run by a division of a leading motor industry body, costs £75 to sign up to. Garages, dealerships and fast fit businesses of all sizes and competence levels alike can buy their certificate to say they have signed up to this code knowing that this is going to be backed with serious promotion equating this to best practice; all this to be read by trusting motorists, female and male alike. And they get this without being vetted.

Is this as good as it might be?

Please judge for yourself.

The code asks them to commit to basic business behaviour such as ‘honest and fair services’ and ‘open and transparent prices’ and provides a helpdesk and complaints procedure. Sound familiar? It would if you worked in the industry as there have been other similar models of old.

My point is that many garages and dealerships are SO much better than this already. Granted some others need to be reminded of the basics but there are also those who may well rub their hands in glee at being associated with better businesses for as little as £75, if only to take advantage of the initial communications launch.

This code is not as good as others in existence but how do motorists know this? What about proven and demanding quality schemes like ATA, BSI or OFT approved code status?

The industry has tried this ‘one size fits all’ approach before. If too many garages/dealerships sign up (and they will because it’s too cheap) it will be unsustainable to manage the quality issues. But it’s a nice little earner at an estimated minimum 5000 businesses x £75 at start up. A cool £375,000+ for promotion and complaints handling; FOXY could do wonders with that sort of income.

I’d be even more sceptical if I had invested heavily in going the extra mile to prove my professionalism above others through ATA training, completing the BSI Kitemark process (service and repair or bodywork repairs) or was a Bosch Car Service centre, the only UK garage network to have invested serious time, money and effort in achieving and maintaining the rigorous OFT approved code of practice. Some businesses have more than one of these acronyms, a few have all three. They are the best there are today.

Looking at this from the female motorists point of view, which FOXY is unique in doing,  rather than from the industry’s point of view, foxy ladies want to know what their local garage choices are and who and where the best ones are.

This code doesn’t answer either question but it could have done, with a little more ambition at the outset.

Yet I am sure it will be declared a success and I really do hope it does make a difference… BUT it is too cheap and easy for garages to sign up to a ‘me too’ undemanding scheme like this one and opt out later if the going gets tough.

The consumer does not understand this yet.

Female motorists pay a high price

My paper tells me that petrol/fuel sales have fallen by 20%, allegedly, because of rising prices.

Who are these people that can do without their cars?

Well they certainly don’t live in rural areas as I do, where buses are no alternative.

Nor can they be Mums with multiple children - have you ever tried a combination of toddlers, pushchairs and the like on buses, tube trains or [joke] bicycles…

And they can’t be part time workers (mostly females) whose hours rarely coincide with others so they are less likely to be able to car share…

The same is true for those of us who also care for elderly relatives or neighbours - how do you get an elderly person to a distant hospital or surgery without it costing them a fortune in taxis - even more than it used to now.

And if you live on your own and want to go out at night, women rely on their car for safety reasons.

Hopefully any such fuel save is environmentally-minded people working from home, being able to walk/bike to work and now feeling the pinch and those of us using technology to save on unnecessary travel. I am surprised to hear how many employers still don’t trust their staff to work as hard at home (despite technology showing what work is done)… there’s a mountain to climb here.

Yes I honestly do believe that most women need their cars more than most men and I think that most women drive fuel efficiently too. So what’s the choice for us? Cough up or stay at home I suspect.

I am sad to see the price of diesel so high to almost negate the mileage and CO2 advantage over petrol. And the unexpected and unfair hike in VED rates for those of us driving popular older cars for sound financial reasons is nothing short of scandalous…

And as the price of fuel rises, the % tax rate remains the same ie richer government coffers by stealth.

Is there a bright light or a dead end at the end of the motoring tunnel? I can’t see where we’re headed yet.

Feeling glum, need a chum.

FOXY Steph

MOT test failures could be worse

In 2007 one in five of all 3 year old cars in the UK failed their first MOT test according to figures from the IAM (Institute of Advanced Motorists).

This is a serious issue concerning road safety, and the government is considering deferring MOT testing cars until they are 4 years old - imagine how unsafe many would be if left another year…

We are told that France had a low 5.61% failure rate after 4 years, Switzerland 17.5% and Norway 19.9%. On the other hand Spain, at 32%, has one of the highest rates there are.

Other countries that test after three years like the UK are Germany (a failure rate of 4.8%) and Austria with a 10% failure rate.

Lighting, signalling, tyres, wheels and windscreens were the major reasons for failure.

The report I read suggested that UK garages might be failing cars to earn from the work they identified. Shock horror.

I am less cynical than I used to be here as the VOSA appointment process is thorough and FOXY has little experience of this happening to women drivers in real life. More likely is that, in true British style, our processes and attention to detail are more rigorous than other countries.

I’d prefer to err on the side of vehicle safety, especially with longer and longer periods between servicing. As many fleet cars are usually sold pre MOT age might it not be that these vehicles enjoy the bare minimum of maintenance and servicing and are thrashed by company car owners in between? That might explain the three year failure rate in our country and be a serious cause for concern.

Equally worryingly, if the three year MOT is postponed to four years, according to a Lord Davidson and an EU report UK motorists would save £465 million (a year apparently) but there is no mention of the cost in human life following any increase in serious road accidents and the economic multiplier effect after the loss of so many industry jobs.

Ask a motorist and she (or he) will go for the financial save believing it to be a safe decision; she and he’d be wrong and I’d hate to be proved right.

I’m not at all convinced, unless of course, someone can prove this with facts and figures.

FOXY Steph

Women drivers dump Swiss Tonis

Smarmy car salesmen, like the Fast Show’s Swiss Toni, have been named the least sexy profession for a man to have by female motorists in a recent survey.

Extra marital dating website IllicitEncounters.com polled nearly 3,000 of its women drivers to name the sexiest profession; car salesmen came in last by a long shot, with just 0.5 per cent of respondents finding them sexy.

Apparently the vote came down to how men respect women which seems a bit ironic when you think why women drivers probably visit this site in the first place.

Just for the record, pilots were voted the sexiest, followed by men employed in media (why don’t I know these chaps?), men in property (not your average builder I guess) then lawyers in fourth place.

More confirmation that women drivers have a poor perception of the motor industry and car dealership salesmen, no matter the reality.

For example, whilst chatting recently, I asked a FOXY Lady Drivers Club member to recommend the VW dealership she had bought her last new VW car from. She later emailed me the name of the salesman who had been very helpful (and got her business for two cars) as well as the name of a female sales rep at a different dealership who was not at all helpful or informed and where our member will not be returning in future.

A case of employing the best you can, no matter the gender. It isn’t difficult.

FOXY Steph

Better consumer communications needed

Apparently women drivers aged 25 to 35 are the worst at keeping their cars in good condition according to a recent survey carried out by Bridgestone Tyres. This is particularly worrying because this age group is more likely than others to have children in their cars at some time.

I wonder if they surveyed female students as these are some of the motorists we find are looking to cut corners for financial reasons.

We are told that motorists in Nottingham are notorious for failing to maintain vehicles well yet Leeds leads the way in car maintenance.

In Nottingham, one in three drivers regularly fails to service their car while other “bad” regions include Birmingham, Bristol, Norwich and Sheffield.

Seven years ago our daughter was fleeced by a garage in Nottingham - this was the catalyst for my business, FOXY Lady Drivers Club.

None of this surprises me but I am disappointed that the retail motor industry has failed to get a stronger message across that a badly maintained (and serviced) car of any age is less safe, less green, less reliable and more expensive to run in the end.

I’d also want more motorists to understand that a professional eye is better than an amateur doing her (or his) best with car maintenance AND that a bad garage does not mean a good car service.

One area that I’d want to look at is the increasingly attractive sales promise that a new car needs fewer services… as the intervals in between lengthen. Yes this is good news for the fleet buyer but how are they checking that their car is being maintained in between? Lots of motorists/businesses think that an U3 year old car doesn’t need much maintenance in between servicing and few know how to choose one of the best local garages.

Maybe the new Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 will start to make these points, now that companies can be held liable in law if negligence can be proved or if an employer has failed to demonstrate a duty of care to their employees using their private cars for business use.

Imagine a situation where a female employee whose private car is insured for regular travelling to and from her work (in addition to the normal domestic, social and pleasure cover) and is involved in an accident as a result of her badly maintained car. How long will it be before the claiming solicitors look to the employer for settlement under this Act?

Makes sound sense for them to subscribe to FOXY’s corporate membership solution and get quarterly car checks, a friendly helpdesk and professional legal motor claims advice and fees I’d have said…

FOXY Steph

Nine years no claims bonus

I am not sure what ‘up to 9 years no claims bonus’ means for the motorist, as advertised by Zurich Insurance.

Certainly it sounds like Zurich wants to cream off the least risk motorists over 25 (more women than men I’d calculate) who are the least likely to use their motor insurance claims service… but what do foxy lady drivers get as a result?

LV= advertises up to 75% NCB which is a more meaningful promise for female motorists but is the Zurich offer even better?

And can you protect it? I certainly would recommend it if the NCB is as significant as it should be/probably is.

Or are they positioning themselves to be seen to offer better value for customers with RBS insurance brands?

FOXY Steph

A better car insurance deal for women?

If you controlled a third of the UK’s private motor insurance market, including a significant portfolio of policies held by better risk women drivers, and this market was predicted to grow by £6bn by 2012, would you choose to sell car insurance brands that are so well known by female motorists? I’m talking about big brands like Direct Line, Churchill and NIG.

That’s the situation the Royal Bank of Scotland is in with the likes of Zurich, AIG and Generali competing for any motor insurance business spoils.

With the marketing job done in terms of brand awareness and so many potential economies of scale to be gained in servicing this business I can’t help thinking that size and status quo is a critical financial advantage for the Bank to leverage. Perhaps we’ll see some brands peeling off instead but surely not the majority unless things are much worse than we realise…

At least this exercise will allow it to put a value on its brands and review ways to make it more competitive in future. Which will be a good thing for female motorists, either way, I’m sure.

Anyone up for a bet?

FOXY Steph

www.foxyladydrivers.com

Credit cards are a better motoring risk

If you prefer paying cash to avoid getting into debt you get less consumer protection that you would have by using a credit card. This is advice from the Trading Standards Institute, not me.

For example, if a foxy lady driver paid for garage services like car servicing or repairs by using her credit card, and if the work costs more than £100, she would be protected by the Consumer Credit Act 1974.

Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 makes the credit card company as responsible as the garage for a breach of contract or a misrepresentation. So, if she or any other driver was unhappy and unable to resolve the issue to her satisfaction she could take action against the garage owner (checking to find out if the owner is an individual, a partnership or a company), the credit card company or both.

But Section 75 does not apply if she were to pay by charge card or debit card.

Which seems daft to me when many smart females and males might prefer to pay cash or use a debit card… why should the law be any different depending on how you pay?

FOXY Steph

www.foxyladydrivers.com

Towards Sweden or Beijing?

There are 620 million cars on roads worldwide - why does this remind me of Katie Melua and Beijing…

To do something about our share of this massive global pollution, the UK Government has said that by 2010 5% all UK fuel should come from biofuels. The EU has gone further, setting a target of 10% by 2020.

This a highly sensitive issue for foxy lady drivers with recent emotional headlines about sustainable fuel sources, the understandable need for land to feed people first and bio mixtures that may damage car engines…

Having started life as a cynic in this area I now know that the UK motor industry is genuinely committed to reducing motor emissions and are doing a sterling job. Most if not all manufacturers are welcoming biofuels and the market leaders seem to be the the Ford Focus and the Saab bio-power (I think Citroen too; their UK fleet is run on biofuels I have been told) but these cars take 85% biofuel, known as E85 and still only available at a few UK forecourts.

Whereas in Sweden there are more than 1,000 biofuel stations and Saab sold 17,000 new bio-power cars there last year. Another difference is the Swedish government’s financial incentives - starting with a 10,000 SEK (£800) rebate on the cost of E85-powered cars; these vehicles are also exempt from Stockholm’s congestion charge and qualify for free residential parking.

Will our government look at doing this sort of thing here?

I seem to recall France encouraging motorists to scrap and cash in old French cars to buy new French cars at a good price? Was that a tactic to boost their car industry, or driven by environmental concerns?

Neither will be good news for motorists who can’t afford to buy new cars or simply want to run well maintained ones for longer.

FOXY Steph