Just over eighty percent of those surveyed said that their first reaction was to check the speedo instead of the road ahead and one in twenty react by braking suddenly.

Little wonder then that speed cameras are being blamed for over 28,000 accidents since 2001.

Braking suddenly under any circumstances puts the driver at risk of a rear end shunt from the vehicle behind, and the blame for these type of accidents are nearly always attributed to the driver behind.

Yet one in three motorists say that they have witnessed an accident or near miss due to the driver in fronts erratic behaviour when confronted with a speed camera.

The general consensus from the survey was that almost half of UK motorists consider that speed cameras are simply a revenue raiser for the government and the same percentage, though not necessarily the same drivers, believe that cameras divert their attention from the road and are therefore a hazard to motorists.

Interestingly one in ten respondents believe that roadside speed cameras increase the risk of an accident.

John O’Roarke, managing director of LV= car insurance, said: “Speed cameras have been a feature on UK roads for almost 20 years, yet the feedback from drivers is that while they may reduce speed they also appear to impair driving ability or at the least concentration on the road. As this report shows some drivers behave erratically and at worst dangerously around speed cameras. When driving it’s important to maintain a constant speed within the legal limits on the road. Excessive speed contributes to 12% of all injury collisions, and we’d encourage drivers to stick to all speed limits and not wait for a camera to reduce their speed suddenly.”

car insurance

It always strikes me as a bit odd that insurance companies say on the one hand that they do not make any money out of motor insurance in the UK, and yet on the other hand every other television advert is selling motor insurance.

Is it because they are spending all their profits on advertising while chasing the kudos of being the biggest supplier of this product in the UK? Who knows?

It goes without saying that purchasing an insurance product is similar to purchasing anything else in life, invariably you get what you pay for and that is particularly true of motor insurance.

Recent research by the independent financial research company Defaqto shows for instance that only 23% of comprehensive motor policies include a courtesy car as standard, a staggering 49% did not provide one at all and the rest including the courtesy car as an option.

Similarly only 21% of policies provide legal cover for uninsured loss recovery as standard. Again around half of the providers offered this as an option and 28% do not cover this item at all.

So clearly it is not only worth shopping around, but also comparing like for like. Figure what cover you are comfortable with and search for the best quote to cover those needs, but remember if you are involved in an accident and left without a car, the cost of hiring one yourself could easily cost more than having it included in your policy to start with.

Something that you will see if you choose an Aviva car insurance quote, is the ‘Uninsured Driver Promise‘. This is something that I have seen from a few of the top names recently and certainly it is an ‘extra’ that offers peace of mind knowing how many uninsured drivers are on the roads.

In conclusion, it is clear with motor insurance that if you pay a budget price, you get budget cover. If you are happy with that, fine, but remember that if you do have an accident it will most likely cost more than the saving that you have made in your premium.

The Young Marmalade founders, hoping to cut road deaths involving young people

August is National Road Victims Month and this year attention is being drawn towards trying to save young lives.

Every year 1.2million people die on the UK roads in traffic accidents and one third of these are young people under the age of 25.

An AA spokesman said: “Government figures show eight out of 10 accidental deaths, from any cause, of men aged 15 to 19 are on the road — as drivers or passengers in cars. This is much, much more than drugs, stabbings or work-related accidents, which tend to grab headlines.”

According to the World Health Organisation Youth Road Safety Report in 2007, Young men aged 17 to 21 are three times more likely than women of the same age to be killed in a road traffic accident.

August is a poignant month for road safety because it sees an increase in the numbers of children being injured on our roads while they are off school.

Young Marmalade, the provider of insurance for young drivers, are members of the Parliamentary Advisory Council for Transport Safety, they are directly involved in the government’s policies towards safety on our roads.

They are offering a new kind of insurance policy for young drivers designed to inspire careful driving by improving access to newer and safer cars and cheaper insurance.

They have teamed up with 13 car manufacturers and sell new (or nearly new cars) to young drivers. They use the volume sale discounts to subsidise the cost of insurance. Youngsters are required to complete a Pass Plus driving course before being eligible.

This year, Young Marmalade’s learner-driver arm, Provisional Marmalade, signed up with motoring accessory giant Halfords to provide young drivers with the extra road practice time that they need. This new, radical type of car insurance allows provisional drivers to purchase fully comprehensive insurance on a family or friend’s car for only £3 per day.

Halfords spokeswoman Diane Perry said: “The high insurance premiums for young drivers deprive many of the opportunity to gain that vital practice needed to supplement tuition from qualified driving instructors.”

“The Driving Standards Agency recommends over 20 hours of private practice alongside professional tuition and this insurance policy has removed one of the biggest concerns facing parents when helping their children behind the wheel – the risk to their No Claims Bonus. We believe this insurance product will help save young lives,” said Nigel Lacy from Young Marmalade.

Young Marmalade was presented with a road safety award by Prince Michael of Kent last year.

Channel 4’s The Ugly Face of Beauty is the latest TV programme to catch the imagination of the nation and as highlighted in that show more people are choosing to travel abroad to undergo cosmetic, dental and elective surgery.

This often costs less than in the UK and recuperation can take place in a more relaxing environment. However things can – and do – go wrong, so here are five tips for anyone considering having treatment abroad.

1.            Carefully research the type of treatment desired, the potential side-effects and any international centres of excellence that there may be.  Also check out the qualifications of the surgeon who will be carrying out the surgery and the after care facilities available. The more a consumer knows about the procedure, the easier it will be to make an informed decision about whether they want to go ahead with it and where they should go.

2.            Speak to the experts! For many types of elective, cosmetic and dental surgery, a UK doctor can provide a recommendation as to who to speak to abroad for specialist advice.  Alternatively, consider using a company with a UK base for added reassurance.  However, if this is not possible, then people should contact local standards organisations and membership bodies in the country they are considering – they will normally be able to provide a list of accredited members.

3.            Review the budget thoroughly and look into costs of having the procedure in the UK and abroad.  While countries like Cuba do offer substantially cheaper common cosmetic procedures, costs such as accommodation and flights may need to be factored in.

4.            Remember it is not a holiday! Some people try to pack too much into their time abroad and forget that they will be recovering from what could be major surgery.  The surgeon will be able to give people the best advice on this matter.  The majority of complications take place within 10 days of surgery so leaving sufficient recovery time and ensuring the flight home is not booked too soon, is vital.

5.            Get the right level of insurance cover.   While no-one wants to contemplate anything going wrong with cosmetic, dental or elective surgery, making preparation for this eventuality can offer peace of mind.  Taking out travel insurance cover such as P J Hayman’s Free Spirit Travel for Treatment policy is essential.

Take time to read through these tips before making any decision and also remember that although many foreign surgeons speak English there is nothing as uncomfortable as being in a foreign hospital where you are unable to understand what is being said.

One of the worst hit industries at that time we were told was the DIY industry, the general public with less disposable income appeared to all but give up on that popular English custom of spending eight hours in the local DIY superstore each weekend.

The news that this industry was suffering as people could no longer afford to spend money on doing up their homes came as a relief to some of us who are not quite as adept at others when it comes to putting up a shelf in the lounge.

Judging by the size of my local DIY store I can only assume that things are back to normal and the regular weekend destination is back on the cards.

Well not for me. While I have some great ideas about improving my home and even understand how to go about achieving any improvements that come to mind, I am absolutely useless when it comes to using tools and within ten minutes of starting I invariably wish that I had not bothered.

When it comes to something like fitting a new kitchen there is not even a chance that I would contemplate starting the work, choosing instead to employ the services of a professional.

This in itself throws up the problem of finding decent carpenters and joiners in the UK who are able to quote for the job but thankfully with tradesmen ranked for work they have done for other clients on this site the choice is made simpler.

One thing that I have learnt along the way is before employing any tradesman to carry out work in my property, check that they have the relevant insurance in place.

All decent tradesmen will have public liability insurance in place in case of causing injury or damage to person or property where they are working. If they are offering professional advice it is worth checking whether they also have professional indemnity insurance which covers you in the result of financial loss due to poor advice being given.

This has led the insurer to predict that 2010 will be the second worst on record for Ecclesiastical who saw an increase of metal theft in 2008 when a record 1,382 claims were made in the same five month period of that year.

That spate of theft blamed primarily on the financial crisis at the time, cost the company £4.2million and led to warnings that premiums would increase unless increased security in insured buildings could be proven.

Whether that advice was heeded by Ecclesiastical’s clients is not clear, but once again as the crime increases the same message applies.

The worrying statistics are say Ecclesiastical linked to the scrap value prevailing at the time of theft, the higher the current value for scrap, the more robberies take place.

It is not just the traditional theft of lead from Church roofs that is involved with 20% of claims now involving schools and heritage properties.

From TV screens going blank during the game, to volcanic ash disrupting travel, terrorist attacks and freak weather conditions, the risk profession plays a key role when it comes to big tournaments, even though they have provided over £6 billion worth of coverage for the month-long event.

Munich Re estimates the broadcasting rights earned FIFA 2.2 billion Euros for the 2002 and 2006 World Cups. If the event is cancelled, FIFA faces substantial claims by companies who have licensed the media coverage.

Swiss Re Group estimate the cancellation of the event is one of the biggest risks insured, and the Olympics and the World Cup are two of the largest events insured for event cancellation coverage. FIFA alone has purchased $650 million in insurance for total cancellation of the World Cup 2010.

Other risks associated with the World Cup are household damage, increased thefts, player injury and even trauma suffered by fans whose teams have underperformed in the games. Surely something that England fans will not have to endure!

This interesting video gives some background to the huge risks and financial costs that must be considered when taking on the responsibility of staging a global event such as the World Cup 2010.

This group are easy prey for thieves says the study, because 92% of the victims carry a mobile phone while out with friends, 74% carry cash and 42% carry an iPod around with them.

The clothes and gadgets carried by the average young teen on Britain’s streets are worth £246 says the report, singling them out as targets for thieves, while 21% of 5-8 year olds carry a mobile phone and 17% carry cash when they’re out and about with friends.

While parents are anxious to keep their offspring safe by allowing them to carry a mobile phone, they may inadevertently be responsible for increasing the risk of theft and mugging.

Furthermore, by focusing their concerns on outside threats such as stranger danger, parents could be blinkered with regard to their children’s safety knowledge in and around the home.

The LV= Streetwise research shows that 38% of 5-15 year olds would not know how to leave the house safely in the event of a fire, and 15% don’t feel they are able to cross the road safely.

Mike Rogers, LV= group chief executive, said:

“Helping to steer your children safely through the world around them is one of the biggest challenges for parents today. While most parents will warn their children to be careful when carrying around cash and expensive gadgets, they may not pay the same attention to the safety risks in and around the home.
Our purpose as an insurer is to protect people’s lives and possessions, so naturally we also feel strongly about helping to educate families about safety and risk prevention. As a founder member of the LV= Streetwise charity we have a long-term commitment to child safety, and the message is going nationwide this summer as our safety bus roadshow visits summer fairs across the UK, to educate youngsters about safety.”

The LV=Streetwise Safety Bus Roadshow is currently touring the UK helping to educate children about safety in the home, on the streets and at railway crossings.

The research says that car ownership for the time-poor city dwellers costs them £3.50 for every mile they cover – excluding fuel.

On average a city car owner only spends 4 hours, 40 minutes at the wheel each week – meaning that their car remains parked for 97% of the time.

With the depreciation of their car, and the cumulative with costs for maintenance, insurance, fines and parking totalling £5,328.96 a year, it’s no wonder that nearly half (48%) would sell their car if there was a convenient alternative to ownership.

As UK cities have become less vehicle friendly over recent years, an incredible two thirds of car owners opt to travel by public transport, cycle or walk short distances rather than face congestion charges and parking stress.

The survey also reveals that owning a car is a stressful business, with over half saying that expense is the biggest stress of all, and 44%  revealing that their vehicle has been damaged or vandalised while parked on the road for any length of time.

With the launch of Europcar’s ‘WeDeliver Service’, the car hire business aims to be the perfect stress busting solution for the city dweller. The new service includes free delivery within 15 miles of an address and offers a rather speedy one hour delivery window even in Britain’s busiest city, London. To make things even easier customers can now have their car delivered to a home, business or even hotel address making car rental queues a thing of the past.

The Icelandic volcanic ash and the consequences of strike action by British Airways staff can make for a very unpleasant experience, even more so if travelling with inadequate travel insurance cover.

Below are ten things that you should consider when buying travel insurance:

1.       No cover for pre-existing medical conditions – Some cheaper policies provide no cover if the individual (or anyone who has an effect on their travel plans) has a pre-existing medical condition which results in a claim, for example, cancellation or medical expenses due to a recurrence of a heart condition.

2. Policies with very specific exclusions – Some insurers, in an attempt to get premiums to the absolute lowest level, use a strategy of harsh exclusions which inevitably trap people at the claims stage.  Examples include very strict interpretation of unattended personal effects, valuables and money as well as a requirement to get a written police report, even though these are often difficult to get in many countries.

3. Selling policies with low levels of cover – Budget covers often have very low limits for elements such as baggage, money and delay – indeed some do not even cover these sections.

4. Selling policies with very high excesses – The higher the policy excess the lower the premium can be. This is not always obvious with travel insurance until a medical claim is made and the customer finds most, if not all, of their claim falls within the excess. There are now policies on the market with medical excesses as high as £400.

5. Confusing exclusions – For example, an exclusion which applies to a “set of circumstances that could be reasonably expected to give rise to a claim”. In this instance, ‘reasonable’ is vaguely defined and open to interpretation from the insurance company who ultimately process the claim.

6. Deductions for wear and tear on baggage claims – Household insurance typically provides ‘new for old’ cover. Many travel insurance policies do not, which means the claim will be reduced depending on the age of the lost, stolen or damaged item.

7. Excesses per person per section rather than per event – This means that an event such as a mugging could result in a large number of different excesses being deducted.  For example: medical costs of £450 with a £75 medical excess, damage to clothing and loss of personal effects amounting to £250 with a £50 excess, loss of money equivalent to £120 with a £50 excess, resulting in total excesses for the claim of £175 rather than £75 on an ‘event’ basis.

8. Missed connections – If an individual is delayed getting to the airport and as a consequence misses their connection, many policies will not cover the additional costs that result, such as additional ticket costs or even an unplanned overnight stay.

9. Breaking down on the way to the airport – It is often assumed that travel insurance provides cover for additional costs if the policy holder misses their flight due to their car breaking down on the way to the airport. However, some cheaper policies will only cover the breakdown of ‘public transport’, and not private vehicles.

10.   Close relatives –The definition of ‘close’ is fairly ill-defined, so while you may think that all of your relatives are ‘close,’ if you study the definitions you may find that many policies limit these. So your favourite uncle becoming ill just before you go on holiday may result in a declined claim for cancellation.

For your own peace of mind, don’t be one of the many travellers who find themselves having to sleep on the floor of a foreign airport overnight because they did not pay for the best cover. All good travel insurance companies will offer comprehensive cover, including travel insurance specialists P J Hayman who provided this check list.