E-Petition Reaches 100,000 target.

On Friday 30th September, the E-Petition to get the cost of Fuel Duty discussed by the government reached its 100,000 person target. This means that the issue of fuel prices will finally be part of a parliament debate.

E-petitions were designed by the government to get the public to come together and have a voice. Now that enough people have spoken out and signed the petition, the issue can finally be discussed. The prices of fuel has continued to rise over last few years and Fair Fuel UK who set up the petition, actually managed to stop a further increase way back in March.

Fuel costs are affecting businesses, workers, families and Fair Fuel UK are working hard to reduce prices to make traveling a lot more affordable. You can still sign the E-Petition, currently it stands at 101,876: http://www.fairfueluk.com/government_e-petition.html

 

Less than 4,000 signatures needed for Fuel Petition

In our last post we talked about the Fuel prices and what you can do to help. Fair Fuel UK launched a campaign to get the issue of fuel tax discussed at parliament level.

The amount of Fuel Tax or Fuel Duty charged is a growing concern in today’s economy and if Fair Fuel UK get 100,000 people to sign an e-petition online, then the issue can be taken to parliament and discussed further there. If you wish to sign the E-petition, click on this link.

Just last week, they needed 9,000 and since then only need 4,000 so they’re nearly there. if you really want to see fuel prices drop then this is the chance to make a difference. The campaign manager Peter Carroll has stated: “There are rumours that the government is trying to identify ways of stimulating the economy without compromising its deficit reduction strategy. One answer is to cut fuel duty. Recent figures released by the Treasury have shown that fuel duty is so high that the Treasury has actually collected less money from it, as people and businesses have just not been able to afford it. Therefore, a fuel duty cut could actually increase tax revenues, increase growth and lower inflation. ”

The current number of signatures on the petition is 96,325. 3,675 signatures to go!

Cutting Fuel Tax will Stimulate the Economy and Create Jobs

At the Liberal Democrat conference today, delegates were informed by Fair Fuel UK about cutting Fuel duty and how it would ‘stimulate the economy’ and ‘create more jobs’.  Delegates were told at a Freight Transport Association Event that there was a ‘“broad agreement that hard working people are suffering from the short comings and costs of public transport plus the pain of some of the highest levels of fuel duty in Europe.”

Fair Fuel UK are traveling to other conferences over the next month to generate more signatures on their e-petition. They only need 9,000 more signatures online for the issue to be debated by Parliament. You can sign the petition here. Prices continue to rise and in the UK it would seem we pay the highest prices for our fuel. Now, with public transport costs rising, there is no cheap way to travel. The issue definitely needs to be addressed so if Fair Fuel UK can get there signatures, the issue can be taken and discussed at the next level.

The increasing price of fuel affects the freight industry in a massive way. Companies with fleets of trucks and HGVs are affected the most and even the slightest increase in fuel will affect them on a big scale. How does the price of fuel affect you? Do you think cutting the Fuel Tax is the right way to stimulate the economy? Let us know your comments by writing them below.

If you have a fleet of vehicles and need fleet or HGV Insurance then contact Broadsure Direct for a quotation.

Warning for Fleet Truck Drivers

Unfortunately, as the cold weather approaches and the nights darken early, everyone’s thoughts turn to Christmas. As of today there is only 96 days until then, and many companies out there are going to start planning for the holiday period. Truck drivers who are carry goods to account for the Christmas rush have been urged to be extra careful around this time. Criminals looking for the latest gadgetry and technology may be targeting lorry and freight drivers to steal what they can. Freight crime on the roads costs the UK millions of pounds each year. Drivers should make sure they take precautions when traveling. Companies should make sure their HGV drivers are aware of the risks. If you have run a freight company and need insurance for your goods or trucks, then visit broadsure direct for a quick quotation.

Rising fuel prices and increased maintenance costs affect Hauliers

fuel gauage

Image: Salvatore Vuono / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Fuel prices have been a constant topic of discussion for years across the UK. Incredibly, the price of diesel increased by 12% in the year up till July 2011.

This is not the only costs that have increased over the course of the year. HGVs such as Articulated lorries have seen rates increase with a small rise in Domestic and International rates.

This on top of rising tire costs and overheads means that some haulage companies with fleets of HGVs could struggle in this economic period. Throughout the recession, some haulage companies reduced their margins and even held off getting replacement vehicles but whether they will be able to sustain this remains to be seen.

If you run a haulage company and require HGV insurance or have a fleet of HGVs and need fleet insurance cover then visit Broadsure Direct to get an insurance quotation for your HGV or Fleet.

..and now for some news on Business Insurance

Here at the Broadsure Direct blog, we don’t usually mention or write articles related to Business Insurance, which is unsual as Broadsure Direct offer competitive rates on Business Insurance. We thought we mix it up a little with some news on a new package being offered by insurance company NIG.

It focuses on small – medium sized businesses and the quoting system has been altered, enabling you to get far more compeitive and flexible pricing through insurance brokers. For larger risks, the Royal Bank of Scotland are offering new no claims discounts with broker discretion to enable even more savings for customers. You can get a quote for business insurance or check out our other insurance products via our website.

Will 20% of car sales be online only in the next few years?

The Internet is said to be bringing new changes every day with more and more people using the web for purchasing goods online. Nowadays, the trust in buying goods online is always increasing and its said that in the next 3-5 years, people will have the confidence to buy cars online.

Obviously there will have to be a lot of information on the car held on the website for people to fully trust the seller. This could include reviews, best prices, videos of the vehicle, pictures and insurance information. The only reason people will not buy online is because they haven’t test driven the vehicle. In my personal opinion, I believe the only thing holding back car sales online is the lack of the option to test drive the vehicle, at which point the buyer could then speak face to face with an advisor and then decide on purchasing the vehicle. Even though the Internet is making purchasing goods a easier, straight forward process, I don’t believe it will account for any more than 20% of sales.

If you buy and sell cars and need motor trade insurance then you can visit our website for a motor trade quote.

Government transport rules

Today the governments rules and plans were unveiled, more specifically, transport plans. There some interesting points in which they have made, firstly for our hgv insurance customers, the government plans to introduce a system in which hgv drivers will be charged to ensure that UK hauliers meet a new fair usage policy.

General motor plans in which our motor trade insurance customers may find useful is that the newly formed government are planning a national recharging network for all the new hybrid and fully electric vehicles that are going to be growing in popularity. Something in which the government is highly focused on is cutting emissions. Lastly, they are going to put a stop to central funding for fixed speed cameras. We’ll let you be the judge on that last one.

Head over to Broadsure Direct for more information on motor trade insurance or hgv insurance.

Winter costs Millions in Insurance Claims

The winter weather over the last few months has cost in total around 650 million pounds in insurance claims. The freezing weather, huge amounts of snow and ice has meant that the number of insurance claims has risen massively. These claims are relating to weather damage for example housing damage caused by large amounts of snow. Other insurance claims include motor vehicle damage where drivers have been unable to control their vehicle on the icy roads.

Its not only the snow and ice causing problems. The floodings that have happened around the country has also caused a problem for insurers with huge amount of flood damage claims. Last winter was recorded as the coldest winter in the last 30 years, insurers are no doubt hoping that this winter doesn’t cause similar problems and cost even more money in insurance claims.

Conservatives back idea for Lorry Charges

The conservatives have introduced plans to introduce charges made for British and Foreign lorries that are over 12 tonnes. There are hundreds of millions of pounds that are being lost to other countries that could be used within the British Exchequer. Their basis for this is that there are a large number of foreign trucks using our roads now and that presents a problem of “unfair compeition”.

An idea quickly dismissed by the liberal democrats was that foreign trucks are only allowed to bring into the UK, 100 litres of fuel. Ideas are being put forward to find a way of charging for the use of foreign trucks on UK roads. Broadsure Direct offer truck insurance, visit our truck page for more information.