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News and Updates from CVSL

Greater Manchester gears up for electric cars as charging network is announced

Tax and Legislation News, Uncategorized,

The Greater Manchester Electric Vehicle (GMEV) scheme – a new electric vehicle charging point network and pay as you go programme, led by Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) – has been launched.

The scheme has received £1.7million of support from  the Office for Low Emission Vehicle’s (OLEV) funded ‘Plugged In Places’ scheme, as well as a further £1m from the combined authorities' allocated transport budget.

TfGM is working with the Greater Manchester local authorities to identify locations and install a range of charge points for EVs, which will be operational in the summer.

The locations will be across the 10 districts providing commuters with the infrastructure to charge electric vehicles.

Private sector partners, such as NCP, Manchester Central,Manchester Metropolitan University,Salford University and Intu Trafford Centre are also on board, providing their own charging bays to supplement the network.

The GMEV scheme will be operated by Charge Your Car (CYC) a leader in EV charging networks. CYC will manage the payments and access to the GMEV scheme on behalf of TfGM.

Customers wishing to use the charging bays will be able to do so from July. They will be able to either register through the TfGM website and then receive an access card in the post, or simply pay as you go either by phone or by mobile app.

The scheme pricing is yet to be confirmed, but users will pay a flat rate per hour to recharge their vehicle.

To recharge a typical EV (7kwh/32amp capability) fully in a GMEV bay will take around three – four hours and cost no more that £6. This will enable an EV driver to travel around 100 miles.

GMEV charging bays (7kwh/32amp) are capable of charging a typical EV in approximately three – four hours, which is three times faster than charging at home.

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Fifth of the country's roads have potholes

Car Leasing, Company News, Uncategorized, , ,

Potholes are becoming an ever increasing problem to all drivers there popping up faster than daffodils and recent reports seem to confirm this with one in five roads affected by pot holes due to the bad weather. But I don’t think we really need a survey to tell us this as I’m sure everyone who drives has noticed this for themselves.

A survey carried out by the AA of more than 22,000 people has revealed that in the last two years a third of AA members have suffered pothole damage to their cars – and the situation looks set to worsen thanks to 30 per cent more potholes being reported on our road network than at the start of 2012.

This has a massive effect on all drivers and as potholes are a major factor in causing axle and suspension failure, which counts for a third of mechanical problems on the UK roads and costs British motorists an estimated £2.8 billion every year. This can make a massive difference on peoples motoring budgets whether it’s a private vehicle or on a Contract hire vehicle.

Roads in Scotlandand Yorkshire and Humberside were rated as the worst in Britain by those taking part in the AA  poll, with 40 per cent rated as being in poor, very poor or terrible condition.

Northern Ireland,Wales and London have the best roads. However, 50 per said that the pothole problem had grown in the last 12 months

This reflects the effects of very wet and frosty weather on poor road surfaces. Potholes form as water freezes and expands in cracks in the road surface. Passing traffic opens up the damaged road surface and rain washes out loose material

The AA also reports that a recent study by the Asphalt Industry Alliance revealed a £2.5 billion maintenance backlog in England and Wales. This makes things look particularly bleak as there are more potholes, a bigger maintenance backlog and less cash.

A recent report by potholes.co.uk also revealed that potholes are increasing not just in quantity but size too. Its study used data from more than 10,000 pothole reports, and found that the average depth of a pothole had increased from 3in to 4in in the last two years.

It says that with 2012 being the second-wettest since records began, plus the freezing winter conditions, it's no surprise that potholes, which are caused when moisture seeps into cracks in the road surface and then freezes, thus expanding and cracking the road, are worse than ever. But they believe it is not just the weather at fault the under-investment by the Government by using temporary fixes has just escalated the problem over the years.

The advice from the experts is to report potholes to potholes.co.uk or fixmystreet.co.uk. These websites will report the potholes to the relevant local authorities, and monitor the report until the pothole has been repaired. Further more, by reporting a pothole to either of these sites, it becomes a matter of record, which is actionable.  They urge drivers to report potholes to highways authorities to allow them to take action and prevent road users from being endangered and their vehicles suffering damage.

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Why CVSL Recommend Checking For Damage Before Returning Your Leased Vehicles

Car Leasing, Fleet Industry News, Uncategorized, , ,

Fleet managers  could save thousands of pounds per year by taking 10 minutes to check the external condition of leased vehicles before they are due to be returned,

This should involve inspecting bumpers, alloys and paintwork for scuffs, bumps and scratches a few weeks before the official end of lease inspection is due.

According to industry figures, 27% of returned vehicles incur a fair wear and tear recharge.

This is generally because damage has been left untouched or not repaired to a high enough standard.

Large  and small fleets could quickly realise significant savings by checking vehicles and organising appropriate repairs themselves through accredited repairers or bodyshops.

follow these five ‘10-minute check-up’ tips:

  1. Ensure the vehicle is clean and dry: dirt and wet can mask scratches and scuffs.
  2. Choose a well-lit location.
  3. Start at one corner – such as the driver’s side headlight – and walk slowly around the vehicle examining each panel, as well as the roof, doors and bonnet.
  4. Crouch down to check the vehicle along its length, on each side.
  5. Pay special attention to wheels and bumpers – these are prime areas for scuffs and scrapes.

As a rule of thumb, minor damage smaller than an A4 piece of paper can be repaired to a high standard by a SMART repairer.

Larger areas of damage require attention in a bodyshop.

Both options are more cost-effective than simply accepting the wear and tear recharge.

Wear and tear recharges have really escalated over the past three years we have heard of many cases where a firm has been billed around £900 for repairs that would have cost a fraction of that with an accredited SMART repair technician. By taking a planned approach and making time to inspect vehicles internally, businesses could save a lot of money.

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Cash For Crash Scam – Fraudsters Convicted

Company News, Tax and Legislation News, Uncategorized, , ,

Here at CVSL we like to keep all our clients whether on personal contract hire or business contract hire up to date with recent news items that may be of interest this week we are highlighting what is called Cash for crash as fraudsters risk lives of others for high financial gain.

This is not a new issue but there has recently been a high profile landmark case when three men who deliberately caused a car crash that led to another collision in which a woman died were sentenced to 10 years each. It was the first time that somebody had been killed as a result of a crash for cash scam.

The fraudsters had been planning to make a personal injury claim in connection with a staged crash on the A40 in Buckinghamshire.

Sgt James Upton, from the Thames Valley Police road death investigation team, said: “The crash for cash culture has become more prevalent in our society, but this is the first known fatality as a result of an induced crash.”

There was also another cash for cash case when the fraudster was jailed for 12 months for conspiracy to defraud and dangerous driving after targeting a commercial vehicle.

CCTV footage from inside the HGV’s in cabin camera helped expose the scam, It showed a   Golf decoy car  braking  hard and late to turn into a side road; the Mercedes-Benz that is following then performed an emergency stop, which caused a rear-end shunt by the HGV.

With this being a very lucrative business it is estimated that the annual cost to the insurance industry of the annual cash for crash fraud is estimated to be about £392 million with £100 million involving commercial policies.  

Fraudsters will either approach a junction, roundabout or intersection and then suddenly jam on the brakes leading to a rear-end collision, or use a ‘no-stop’ vehicle driven erratically by one gang member to cause a car driven by another gang member to break violently immediately in front of a vehicle, leading to a rear-end collision.

After the accident, the criminals claim compensation, often with the help of bogus witnesses and other parties that might be involved in the scam, for injuries, vehicle damage, replacement vehicle hire, loss of earnings and other costs. A scam can typically net the criminals £20,000 to £40,000.

It can become very costly for victims whether it be buisness or private  these claims have knock on effects to future insurance premiums as it is very difficult to prove you have been involved in a cash for crash scam and its not your fault.

There are a few options available to record what is in front of you when your driving some very sophisticated which can cost around £200 to £300 pounds but you can also get some cheap Smart-phone apps which do a similar job and only cost £1. The evidence from these recordings have already been used to help the police in there quest to convict these criminals and in the future the CCTV evidence will play a major part in stopping this crime. 

Here are a few quick pointers to be aware of if you suspect you’re involved in a crash for cash scam    

  •               Stay calm, think clearly and, as with any accident, don’t admit liability
    • If a ‘no-stop’ vehicle is involved, try to get its registration number – or at least a brief    description
    • Call the police and if there’s the slightest indication of injury, call an ambulance as well
    • Use a disposable camera or your mobile phone to photograph the immediate scene, road markings and damage to the car involved
    • Count the number of occupants in the car, get their names, addresses an dates of birth and make a note of where they were sitting in the car
    • Look for independent witnesses – avoid anyone who’s too enthusiastic, though they might be in on the scam
    • Look for CCTV cameras in the vicinity and tell your insurer
    • Call the confidential Insurance Fraud Bureau Cheatline on 0800 328 2550 with any information you feel may be relevant
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Geneva Motor Show: Volkswagen Golf named Car of the Year

Car Leasing, Fleet Industry News, Uncategorized, , , ,

Volkswagen’s Golf has been named Europe’s Car of the Year 2013 at the Geneva Motor Show.

The lower-medium car beat the Ford B-Max, Hyundai i30, Mercedes-Benz A-Class, Peugeot 208, Renault Clio and Subaru BRZ/Toyota GT86 to the honour.

The finalists were evaluated by the panel of judges, consisting of 58 automotive journalists from 22 countries, during the past few months under a broad range of criteria, such as fuel efficiency, comfort, safety, driving properties, functionality, design and technological progress.

Prof Dr Martin Winterkorn, chairman of the board of management of the Volkswagen AG, said: “That's a superb result, and we are very proud of it.

“This most significant European award is the perfect final touch to the list of prizes we've already won.”

Check out our VW Golf quotes on two, three or four year deals on our up to the minute quoting system on the website.

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