VAN INSURANCE NEWS ROUNDUP: 7 DAYS ENDING 13 JUNE 2014:
There’s good news and bad news for you this week: while it’s true that the overall cost of keeping a vehicle on the road has gone down, this isn’t set to last.
Whether you’ve got a personal vehicle or you use a van or lorry for work, it can be a serious endeavour keeping your motor on the road. Between petrol costs, trying to find cheap car insurance or commercial van insurance, and the cost of maintenance and testing it’s a major expense. However, it looks like these costs have eased over the last 12 months according to new data released by the AA.
Overall costs dropped by around £300 a year for a vehicle of around £13,000 to £18,000 in value, which is most likely the average value of many cars used as daily drivers or vans used for work by tradesmen. It’s a minor drop, but it’s a welcome one for sure – an extra £300 may not sound like much, but that can go a pretty long way if you’re smart with your cash.
Of course, the good news is eclipsed by the bad news rather quickly. It turns out there are new fines that will be going into effect for many driving offences in the very near future, and the penalties are growing by leaps and bounds in comparison to the level they are now. For instance, right now while it’s possible you could end up paying a fine of £2,500 if you’re caught speeding on UK motorways, the new penalties see this maximum fine rise to an eye-watering £10,000!
Well that will certainly work as a deterrent. If I knew there was a chance I could get slapped with such a hefty fine, I’d sure as anything not deviate over the speed limit on any motorway I was on. Still, there will undoubtedly be a few white van men that get distracted behind the wheel and end up getting caught – it’s almost inevitable. With a sudden £10,000 penalty to pay, you’d better hope that other motoring costs keep going down!