66 | MAY 2017
Motoring
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COMPENSATION FOR POTHOLE DAMAGE
The Asphalt Industry
Alliance’s (AIA’s) annual
pothole survey states that
our roads will not be fit for
purpose in five years. In the
light of that, former racing
driver Amanda Stretton who
is motoring editor at Con-
fused.com advises drivers
to seek compensation when
necessary.
She says: “It is shocking
that one in six roads in the
UK are in such poor condi-
tion. While heavy traffic and
rainy winters has caused
inconceivable damage, it
seems that underfunding has
meant that local councils are
not able to keep up with the
repairs, with a 19% decrease
in the number of potholes
filled last year.
“The AIA has estimated
that local authorities now
need more than £12 billion
to repair the roads. Unfortu-
nately for drivers, the cost of
replacing suspension springs
in a typical vehicle costs as
much as £350 - and this is on
top of any tyre damage. We
would advise drivers to claim
compensation either through
local authorities or through a
comprehensive car insurance
policy - provided the driver
has evidence to prove the
damage was caused by driv-
ing on a poorly maintained
road.
“Drivers needing to make
a claim for pothole damage
should do so by making a
note of where the pothole is,
referencing the date and time
of the incident, and taking
a photo. They should then
contact the body responsible
for maintaining the road,
either the Highways Agency
or the local council, to make
a formal complaint.
“Compensation claims
could end up costing the
government more in the
long term than if they
were to spend the neces-
sary funds to replace the
road surface. We urge the
government to take imme-
diate action to review the
investment in the road in-
frastructure, as this will save
everyone time and money.”
Government rules
For more details, visit the
step-by-step guide that
advises drivers how to
claim for pothole damage:
https://www.confused.
com/motor-insurance/
your-cover/how-to-claim-
for-pothole-damage-to-
your-car-van-vehicle
TACKLING CONGESTION COST
With the aim of reduc-
ing the cost of congestion
in the UK, which amounts
to around 2-4% of Gross
Domestic Product (GDP) in
lost time, wasted fuel and
increased business costs*,
Oxfordshire County Council
and Waze, the free, real-time
crowd-sourced sat nav app,
have teamed up to improve
urban mobility.
Oxfordshire is a growing
county - 85,000 new jobs
and 100,000 new homes are
forecast for the county up to
2031 - meaning that long-
term solutions are needed to
meet future demands.
With average car speeds
in city centres continuing to
slow to as little as seven mph
(the average speed of traffic
on the A202 in London, the
slowest traffic corridor on the
worst day/hour **), address-
ing all causes of traffic con-
gestion can help to combat
potential increasing costs to
the economy and worsening
air pollution.
Following Transport for
London, Oxfordshire County
Council is now the second
UK Connected Citizens Part-
ner (CCP) with Waze. In a bid
to speed up journey times
and ease up traffic hotspots,
CCP is designed as a free,
two-way data exchange that
empowers municipalities to
DRIVERS
UNAWARE
OF NEW CAR
TAX LAWS
harness real-time driver in-
sights to improve congestion
and make better-informed
planning decisions. As a
result, one of its 147 global
partners in Boston, US, has
successfully reduced emer-
gency response times by four
minutes. Here in the UK, the
hope is to catch congestion
before it gets into Oxford
and direct people to the most
effective and efficient routes
into town.
which came into force from
April 1st will increase car
tax of some 2017-plate ve-
hicles to £2,000 for the first
year. They will also intro-
duce a standardised rate of
up to £140 from the second
year of ownership.
But according to research
by Confused.com, the site
for car savings, as many as
six out of ten (61%) drivers
are unaware of the new car
tax laws. Shockingly, only
one in ten (11%) drivers
understand the new rules,
which could set them back
hundreds of pounds when
buying a new car. Eight in
ten (79%) drivers did not
think the changes were
well-publicised.
*(source: Bloomberg New Energy Finance, McKinsey) **(Source: INRIX 2015 Traffic Scorecard, TomTom Travel Index 2016) **BRITAIN’S motorists were given an £800
million boost in the fight against congestion by Chancellor Philip Hammond when he announced in the spring budget £90 million for the North and £23 million for the
Midlands to address pinch points on roads. Overall, the chancellor launched a new £690 million competitive fund for English councils to tackle urban congestion.
Pressure to investigate petrol ‘rip-off’
In light of recent
pressure on the Prime
Minister to launch an
investigation into the costs
of petrol prices following
a ‘£6bn rip-off’, Amanda
Stretton, former racing
driver and motoring editor
at Confused.com, com-
ments:
“Although drivers are
likely to be enraged
to hear they are being
ripped-off with petrol pric-
es, many may not find the
news surprising, given that
the average driver spends
£118.58 filling up their
tanks every month, accord-
ing to research by Con-
fused.com. And with fuel
prices rising over the last
year, it has been suggested
that greedy fuel giants are
taking advantage of drivers
by overcharging them an
extra 2p a litre at the pet-
rol pumps.
“In order to alleviate
the burdening cost of fuel
which is weighing the av-
erage driver down by over
£1,400 a year, motorists
should try and drive more
resourcefully to limit their
fuel consumption. This
includes driving at slower
speeds, accelerating gradu-
ally, avoiding over-revving
and using a higher gear.
Drivers will need to be as
savvy as ever to find the
cheapes