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DRINKING
AND DRIVING:
(01/02/2009)
An
11 % increase in under 25s failing breath tests over the Christmas period 2008 shows
the battle against drink driving is never ending. Figures released show
that of 48,214 under 25s tested during December 2008, 2,709 tested positive, failed
to provide or refused a breath test.
If
you drive at twice the legal alcohol limit you are at least 30 times more likely
to cause a road crash, than a driver who hasn't been drinking.
Any
amount of alcohol affects your ability to drive. There is no foolproof way of
drinking and staying under the limit, or of knowing how much an individual
person can drink and still drive safely.
What
is the drink drive legal limit?
The legal alcohol limit for drivers in
Great Britain
is:
- 80
milligrammes (mg) of alcohol per 100 millilitres (ml) of blood (80mg/100ml),
or
- 35
microgrammes of alcohol per 100ml of breath, or
- 107mg
of alcohol per 100ml of urine
The
limit has remained unchanged since its introduction by the Road Safety Act 1967,
which also gave the police powers to breath-test drivers suspected of drink
driving.
What
are the current penalties?
For exceeding the legal alcohol limit for drivers:
- up
to 6 months in prison
- a
fine of up to £5000
- a
minimum of 12 months' disqualification (3 years for a second offence within
10 years)
Why
isn't the limit zero?
Even without drinking, some alcohol can be present in the body produced by
fermentation processes when certain foods are digested. This means that a zero
limit isn't practical.
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2,946
DEATHS ON THE ROAD IN 2007:
(26/11/2008)
For the first
time since the 1920's the number of people killed on our roads has dipped below
the 3,000 mark to 2,946, the best news this year.
Source: Advanced
Driving (IAM Magazine Winter 2008)
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PHOTOCARD
DRIVING LICENCE EXPIRY:
(22/08/2008)
Did you know all photocard
driving licences need
to be updated every 10 years? The photograph
on the licence is only valid for this period
and the licence holder
must update their licence
before their current photo expires. Failure
to do so may result in a fine of up to £1000.
Full details on
renewal can be found at www.direct.gov.uk/motoring |
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CLEAR YOUR CAR OF DANGEROUS CLUTTER: (22/04/2008)
Most Drivers only clear their
car of clutter once a year, thereby putting themselves and the safety of other
road users at risk, according to a new study by the AA. A number of risks
were highlighted including: bottles and cans rolling under pedals, obscured
vision due to dirt on the inside of windows and loose items such as toys
becoming dangerous when travelling at speed.
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LAZY MOTORISTS AT RISK OF CAR
THIEVES AND IDENTITY FRAUD: (22/04/2008) One
in ten car owners regularly leave sensitive documents such as bills and bank
statements in their car leaving them exposed to identity fraud, and a fifth of
car owners display more than £150 of valuables in their car, according to new
research by direct line insurance. The advise is hide all valuables, lock
your car and park in busy well lit areas or a secure car park.
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PARENTS COMMIT ROUTINE INSURANCE
FRAUD: (22/10/2007)
Thousands of parents are
unwittingly committing fraud by insuring their child's car in their own
name. A YouGov survey for Zurich insurance showed that 1 in 10
parents and Grandparents who have helped youngsters buy a car have insured
in their name with the youngster a named driver.
Zurich said that anybody
who did this was guilty of 'fronting' - the insurance fraud of a named
driver being the main driver. They also say this is a false economy
as in the event of an accident, an insurer could decline a claim or
recover any third-party costs from the child or the parents. Worse
still if the insurer declines the claim, the police could then treat the
young driver as uninsured, meaning six penalty points and an automatic ban
for a new driver.
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| USE OF
MOBILE PHONES: (30/01/2007)
On the 1st December 2003 a
new law made it a specific offence to hold and use your mobile phone
whilst driving. Since the 27th February 2007 the penalty for this
offence is a £60 fine and 3 points on your driving license.
If you need to make a
call with a hands free kit, try to keep it to a minimum and warn the other
person that you are driving and may need to break off the conversation at
any time.
If you're in any doubt,
you should find a safe place to pull over, stop and switch off your engine
before using a mobile. |
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ROAD
SAFETY BILL IN PARLIAMENT:
(12/12/06)
The
Government is proposing to change the current penalty points structure
with a new Road Safety Bill which is currently going through Parliament
and expected to become law in 2007.
The
current system results in a minimum of three points and £60 fine for each
speeding offence and 12 points in a year resulting in a ban.
The new
Road Safety Bill wants to introduce three tiers of speeding penalties,
with points and fines rising according to the gravity of the
offence.
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THINK
DRUG DRIVING - NOT A SAFE TRIP:
(18/10/2005)
Driving
under the influence of drugs - whether prescribed medication or illegal
substances - is just as dangerous as driving when drunk. It's also against
the law.
Drugs
can affect your mind and body in a variety of ways that mean you aren't
able to drive safely. Not only that, the effects can last for hours or
even days.
The
police can carry out roadside tests of impairment to help them decide
whether to arrest you if they think you are unfit to drive through drugs.
The
penalties are the same as for drink driving. You face a minimum one year
driving ban, a fine of up to £5,000, and six months jail.
The
THINK! campaign 'Drug driving. Not a safe trip' is the first
government campaign to raise awareness of the effects of drugs on people's
driving
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| PART-WORN
TYRES LOSE THEIR GRIP:
(27/10/2004) Research
carried out by the British Rubber Manufacturers' Association indicates
that tyres lose their ability to grip well before they have worn down to
the 1.6mm legal minimum tread depth. It found that even with 3mm of
tyre tread remaining, stopping distances on wet roads increase by 30 per
cent. |
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| PARENT
ALERTED OVER CAR SEATS:
(05/10/2004) New
research has highlighted that not all parents are using appropriate child
seats in their cars. Key
findings:
- 60% of parents
stopped using child seats when their children were six or under.
- 1 in 10 parents had
stopped using car seats by the time their child was three.
- Only 41% of parents
of children aged seven to nine and just 26% of those with children
between ten and eleven said their child travels in a child seat.
- in 2002 35 children
died and 480 were injured while traveling in cars.
Department of transport
advise is that children need to be in a purpose built car seat or booster
until they are either eleven years old or 150cm tall. Adult seatbelts will
not fit them properly and will put them at higher risk of injury.
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