The Week Unzipped - Green light for tough road laws

Published on Saturday 16 August 2008 15:44

MOTOR insurers have welcomed the crackdown on careless driving which comes into force tomorrow and provides for more serious punishment, including prison, for drivers who cause death because they were not paying due care and attention.

The courts will also consider 'avoidable distractions', including use of mobile phones, when sentencing motorists. Eating, drinking and applying make-up are also treated as distractions that could lead to a fatal collision.

Simon Douglas, director of AA Insurance, says: "Using a hand-held mobile telephone while driving already attracts a fixed penalty of 60 and three penalty points. However, this offence often also attracts a careless driving penalty – whether the driver is involved in an accident or not.

" In the event of an accident, particularly if someone is killed or seriously injured, police will routinely check mobile telephone records to see whether use of the phone was a contributory cause."

On a lighter note, left-handers make better drivers and are more likely to pass their tests first time, according to AA Driving School research. Almost six out of 10 left-handed drivers pass first time, 10% more than their right-handed counterparts.

Although a quarter of motorists complained that cars are designed with right-handers in mind, just 5% believe being left-handed makes learning to drive harder.

Artful lodger

HOMEOWNERS could pocket an extra 63.4bn per annum by renting spare rooms to lodgers, research from Abbey Mortgages indicates.

The bank estimates more than 18 million homeowners have one or more rooms available and could earn on average 3,468 a year plus up to 4,250 in tax-free rental income, in line with the Government's optional Rent-a-Room scheme, which lets people profit from renting accommodation in their only or main home.

Around 388,000 homeowners already rent spare rooms, netting a combined yearly sum of 1.1bn. But Abbey warns people to check their lenders' and insurers' terms and conditions before renting out their spare bedrooms.

Shy of retiring

SIX out of 10 adults expect to continue working in some capacity after they reach retirement age, according to research from Aegon.

As well as staying at work, today's retirees plan on pursuing further education or taking on charity work.

Less than a third intend to stop working completely. The reasons given for carrying on working include "love of the job" and feeling "too young to retire". One in 10 would like to try out a completely different career in their retirement.

However, the report indicates that some people are not planning sufficiently for their retirement, with 42% admitting they have no clear idea how much income they will have in retirement.