October 20th, 2008 Administrator
Uninsured and unlicensed drivers are killers who must be stopped.
There are about 1.5 million people driving on Britain’s roads without insurance. Every year they maim and kill thousands of other motorists, costing the insurance industry around £500 million and adding an average of £30 to every driver’s annual insurance premium. From Monday, for the first time, it will be a criminal offence to cause death while driving a vehicle which is unlicensed or uninsured, or when disqualified. It is about time (see page 15)
The present law is ludicrously lax. A car can be a lethal weapon and all too often those causing accidents are drivers who have no right to be on the road. Catching and stopping them, however, is proving very difficult. If a car is never registered, there is no computer record at the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency in Swansea.
Anyone renewing a tax disc has to show a valid insurance certificate; the presumption is that unless application has been made for a statutory off-road notification (Sorn), car owners who do not renew their tax disc are breaking the law. But there are no records of the thousands who drive old unroadworthy vehicles, untaxed and uninsured and, being untested, inherently dangerous. Random police numberplate scans pick up thousands each year. But for most, the first time their car enters official records is after a crash.
What is especially scandalous is the high number of people still driving while uninsured and the falling level of fines. In 2006 some 263,000 drivers were convicted, compared with 255,000 in 1997. But the average fine paid fell 17 per cent, from £224 in 1997 to £185 in 2006. Payment has become ever harder to enforce: those caught – petty criminals, illegal immigrants, young and reckless drivers – often have no job, no money and no fixed address and magistrates have despaired of levying penalties that cannot be collected.
The law needs to be far tougher. The section of the Road Safety Act 2006 that takes effect on Monday will at least end the absurdity of magistrates needing proof of dangerous driving before they can enforce criminal penalties on uninsured drivers. From next week, a charge of driving while uninsured, unlicensed or disqualified can go before the Crown Court and incur a maximum sentence of two years’ prison. Statistics show the need: in 2000 160 people died because of an uninsured driver; that figure had risen to 208 last year, despite a general fall in road deaths.
Police already have the power to seize and crush old, dangerous and unlicensed cars – a power used too infrequently. Because of the rising cost of learning to drive, passing a test and registering a vehicle, more and more people have been tempted to ignore all the laws on registration and insurance. Their fatal recklessness must be stopped. Keeping a car on the road is, admittedly, expensive – partly because the uninsured put up all insurance costs. Keeping potential killers on the road costs far, far more.
From : Times online
Posted in Driving, Pass Plus, Road Safety | No Comments »
September 14th, 2008 Administrator
Txt-Drive is pleased to announce that it can now be found on Facebook®.
Driving school Txt-Drive is Bedford’s FIRST driving school to be present on Facebook®.
We would encourage those of you wanting to learn to drive in Bedford, Bedfordshire and surrounding areas to support Txt-Drive and become ‘Fans’.
Txt-Drive will regularly place SPECIAL PROMOTIONS on the Txt-Drive Page on Facebook®. These promotions will be FREE books & DVD’s – (very useful in practising for the Theory & Hazzard Perception tests) – to discounts on Pass Plus, HALF PRICE driving lessons and even FREE driving lessons for you and your friends!!!
To take advantage of Txt-Drive’s SPECIAL PROMOTIONS you must be a fan of Txt-Drive on Facebook®.
To vist the Txt-Drive Page on Facebook® and become a Fan please click the link the link below :
Facebook is a registered trademark of Facebook®, Inc.
Posted in Driving, Driving Lessons, Driving Tests, Pass Plus | No Comments »
August 10th, 2008 Administrator
Road chiefs have launched an anti-litter campaign after collecting a tonne of rubbish from just one six-mile stretch of motorway.
To be run by the Highways Agency, the summer “Bag it and Bin it” campaign will target England’s motorways and major A roads.
The agency’s workers recently collected 189 refuse bags of litter from the six-mile stretch of the M3 between junctions 1 and 2 near south west London.
The agency said that on 34 miles of the M1 between junctions 24 and 30 in the East Midlands, roughly 2,500 refuse bags of litter are collected each year.
And in north west England, in the first six months of this year, just over 32,100 refuse bags of rubbish were collected from motorways and major A roads.
Derek Turner, the Highways Agency’s director of network operations, said: “Everyone agrees roadside litter is unsightly, and clearing it up from the roadside takes up valuable resources that could be used elsewhere.
“We want everyone to help us keep England’s roads clear by getting into the habit of keeping a bag in their vehicle to store their rubbish until they can find a bin for it.”
Sheila Rainger, deputy director of the RAC Foundation, said: “With rubbish, there’s no such place as ‘away’ – every piece of litter tossed onto the carriageway has to be picked up by someone.
“Throwing litter onto the road is a filthy habit and there’s no excuse. It’s a waste of money which could be better spent on repairs and maintenance and it’s a safety hazard for everyone who has to dodge bags, cans and bottles on the road.
From : Yahoo
Txt-Drive, a driving school based in Bedford, offers driving tution on Motorways. The Pass Plus course is ideal for pupils who have recently passed their driving test at the Bedford Test Centre. Pass Plus covers six modules including motorways. Pass Plus is designed to develop the existing skills learnt on your driving lessons. On completing the Pass Plus course, you should be entitled to a discount on your car insurance. Please see the Pass Plus website for details or the Txt-Drive website should you wish to do the Pass Plus course in Bedford.
Posted in Driving, Pass Plus, Road Safety | No Comments »
July 31st, 2008 Administrator
Txt-Drive asked a former pupil to give us some information regarding his car insurance as a ‘real life’ case study.
Dan learnt to drive in Bedford with the driving school Txt-Drive. He recently passed his driving test in Bedford (passed his driving test at the Bedford Test Centre on his first attempt, gaining only got 2 minor faults).
Before Dan passed his driving test, he started to look for car insurance. After numerous phone calls and hours online searching for the best quote, Dan found Direct Line was cheapest at £1450.
Shortly after passing his driving test in Bedford, Dan booked the Pass Plus course with Txt-Drive. Having completed the Pass Plus course, Dan’s insurance was discounted by 28% to just £1050, giving him a saving of £400!!!
The Pass Plus course is a driver training scheme for new drivers. It has been specially designed by the Driving Standards Agency (DSA), with the help of insurers and the driving instruction industry. Only registered driving instructors, such as Txt-Drive, can offer the Pass Plus course.
Posted in Driving, Pass Plus | No Comments »