Why Get Fined? Just Pay Up And Avoid The Hassle

It really isn’t worth the effort some van drivers will go to, trying to avoid paying fines.

One recent example follows.

A van driver had been speeding in a 60mph zone (doing between 72-74mph).

He received a rather grainy image of the white transit van, since he was the registered owner.

This was accompanied by a request for details of the driver at the time,

along with a notice of intended prosecution.

Honesty Is The Best Policy: Not For This Van Driver

The easiest (and most honest) option of course would have been to own up and pay the fine.

Not forgetting the three points on his licence.

Sadly, this van driver decided he would try quite hard to avoid paying anything at all.

Even though he knew he was behind the wheel at the time.

He decided to go to some extreme measures to avoid prosecution.

He bought black and red stripes to stick on the vehicle, a GB number plate, and a 60mph limit sticker to go with it.

300 Hours Of Investigations For This Van Driver!

After some 300 hours of following and investigating, officers actively compared earlier photographs of the van to those taken after they issued the fine.

They determined definitively that the registered owner had been speeding

Of course, this was a costly exercise for the local constabulary.

Things Were Not About To Get Any Better

The 62-year-old had to finally appear in court.

He was told that he was in a much worse position than had he just owned up and paid the fine.

The extent he went to in order to avoid the fine had used up a considerable amount of taxpayer’s money and time spent investigating.

Ouch!

The driver had six previous convictions and points on his licence.

The judge sentenced him to four months in prison (suspended for 12 months) and banned him from driving for six months.

Finally, he had to pay a £500 fine towards costs.

Hopefully, he has learned a lesson in honesty!

Delivery Driver Woes

A couple of teenage boys surprised a female delivery driver in Coventry by opening the van door and threatening her with a machete.

The pair, aged 14 and 15 at the time, demanded the van keys.

Thankfully, the delivery driver didn’t hand over the keys but instead bravely managed to take the machete away from them.

Not before they had stolen her mobile phone though.

Once she grabbed the machete, the pair ran off, which is hardly surprising. However, police with sniffer dogs later caught them.

Police arrested them on suspicion of robbery and possession of a large knife, and they continued questioning them while in custody.

The police have issued a warning to delivery drivers to be aware of potential robberies, especially with the run-up to Christmas and the usual increase in parcels in their vans.

 

Make sure your insurance is the best and cheapest van insurance quotes for your van.

Simply begin by completing this quick 3-minute form.

The Hidden Dangers Of A Messy Van: Why Clutter Could Cost You Big

How many drivers have messy vans?

It probably didn’t start that way.

But over time, life gets busy, and you’ll “tidy up next time.”

We all know “next time” rarely comes.

Suddenly, you’ve got cans, coffee cups, and wrappers piling up in the cab.

Sound familiar?

But is it really a problem?

Actually, yes—it can be.

Imagine something on the floor rolling over to the driver’s compartment.

What could happen then?

Two things are likely.

You need to brake, but there’s something lodged under the pedals.

Or, you decide to move it—and now, you’re distracted.

Both situations can lead to serious consequences.

If your van’s too messy, you could even face fines and points on your licence.

Did you know?

While there’s no specific law against a messy van, Rules 117-121 and 144 of the Highway Code might still apply.

Law enforcement, for instance, could easily notice you struggling with clutter.

As a result, depending on the severity, you might face a fine of up to £5000.

And in the unfortunate case where a fatality occurs due to distraction?

A prison sentence may inevitably follow.

Think it’s rare?

Apparently, millions of drivers leave rubbish in their vehicles.

But if your van looks more like a skip, it’s time to clean up.

Take it home.

But don’t throw rubbish out of the window.

Rule 147 of the Highway Code prohibits that too.

This includes cigarette ends and all that clutter.

Remember, it’s about consideration for others—especially cyclists and motorcyclists.

Is your insurance up to date?

Now’s a good time to check.

Use our quick 3-minute form form to find the cheapest options online.

Van Insurance Is Cheaper Than Ever

Yes, more good news this week for our van driving men and women of the UK. We’re over all this doom and gloom, let’s find some reasons to be cheerful. 

And one more bit of good news to follow from last week is the news that van insurance is now cheaper than ever. Well, not ‘ever,’ but it is now the cheapest it’s been in over four years.  Since February, car and van insurance premiums have fallen an average of £56. 

This is as a result of fewer cars on the road, and, fewer accidents as a result. This means that the pay-outs that insurance companies are making has dropped, and so they are able to reduce the price of your premiums. In fact, one or two of the insurers have even paid out to their customers in the form of a rebate because there has been such a dip in claims made, making it worth a phone call to your van insurer to ask what they are doing – after all, if you don’t ask, you don’t get. It’s also worth checking to see if your annual mileage can be reduced if you’ve been of the road at all these past few months, which could also save you money.

In other news, if you are in the trades and anticipating getting back to work in the next few weeks, be aware about new coronavirus restrictions on who you can have in your van. Yes, it’s now illegal for there to be anyone in the middle seat of your van, unless you are all members of the same household, in which case, you can fill your boots and your van with as many as you please. If your van is a two-seater, there’s only the driver allowed to be in it. And if you do have back seats, the second person needs to be sitting there, on the passenger side. So, getting everyone on site might become a bit of a nightmare.

Whatever you are doing, stay safe and keep at it, our UK van driver heroes. 

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

How is everyone this week? Whether you’re currently locked down or out on the road, rest assured we are here, cheering you on, whatever is happening in the world. Week nine of lockdown may be sending us slightly stir crazy, but it won’t stop us in our quest to bring you, our trusty van drivers of the UK, the latest news and opinions in the van driving world.

Let’s start with some good news – if some of you have lost your jobs as a result of COVID-19, there appears to be a marked increase this week of companies seeking reliable van drivers up and down the UK. It appears that employers are ready to start their recruitment engines as things start to get back to normal. And for those of you who have been waiting on self-employed government payouts, the Self Employment Income Support Scheme is now live and processing payments to those who saw significant business interruption. There are also new bounceback loans available through all high street banks, which offer a government-backed loan of up to £50,000 for small businesses. These loans are interest and payment-free for the first year. 

And it seems the UK government is also ramping up to get the country moving again, although, with the new fuzzy messaging, we’re not entirely clear on what changes when, but then we don’t think anyone else really knows either. But let’s be optimistic and hope it starts to gear up again soon, like we anticipate it will.

Less good news is that the rebates for van and car insurance that we hoped would be forthcoming as they have been in other countries, has not yet rolled out through the UK. Two insurers are offering a small rebate, but we still hope to see all van insurance companies giving their customers some of their profits back, given the huge drop in claims they have seen as a result of the lockdown. 

And absolutely terrible news for those in the south of the country is that London Mayor, Sadiq Khan has raised the congestion charge to £15 (including weekends) whilst simultaneously outlining plans to close major London roads over the next six weeks, to make way for walking and cycle routes. Good luck if you’ve got deliveries in the capital – seems like the mayor is expecting you to bike them in from the suburbs. More on this next week as we get to grips with all the implications.

So there we have it – the good, the bad, and the downright ugly. But to end on a high note, don’t forget we can make your life that little bit easier if you need to renew your van insurance policy with our free 3-minute quote tool to give you the best deals around.

Until next week  – stay safe. 

Step 1

Complete your quick and easy quote

Step 2

Reveal your van insurance policies

Step 3

Pick your favourite and get instant cover