Celebrating Positives (offset of the Gripes Thread)

[Jerry_Atrick]

Gentlemen, I present to you, the new @Marty_d:

 

[ClintonB]

That guy looks a bit like the guy who walked into the prop on Indiana Jones.

that has stuck with me since I was a kid watching it.

[Jerry_Atrick]

Well, she swaped out two instructors - the first two having what could be best described as personality traits not reallu suited to teaching people, but daughter passed her driving test yesterday. First attempt with whom her current instructor thinks is the toughest examiner and no deductions - i.e. a perfect score! 

 

As I welcomed her to eternal poverty, I realised it is our cost of living going up! As she starts university in September and over here many universities, including the one she is going to, require first year students to live in on-site accomodation, it doesn't make sense for her to get a car, yet. But at the moment, she works 16 miles away. To date, parents have been driving her to work and picking her up 4 days a week, which is 256 miles a week. She will now driver herself to and from work using the mini (she won't drive the Volvo), so that should reduce the mileage to 128 miles a week. Happy daze, right!

 

Well,, er.. no... So, we have to get her insured. Insurance here is more of a scam than Australia. As my partner doesn't drive much except to take daughter to work, we legally cannot put my daughter as a nominated but not main driver of the car. Our insurer doesn't insure higher risk drivers (i.e. youn-uns). so we had to cancel the policy we just renewed (with a cancellation fee) and take out a new one, where my daughter is the main driver and both partner and I are named drivers. Previous insurance bill: £380. New one (after significant time shopping around), £1800. TThe average quote was £4,000, and we had one come in at a reasonable £10,000 (the car is valued at £9,000). With this, my daughter has to drive with an app on her phone and paired to a tracker that makes sure she complies with all the rules (which no one normally does). 

 

But, because my daughter will need to drive to work and partner doesn't want to give her a lift when I am in London, I now have to take the Volvo. The fuel usage is only marginally more than the Mini as the former is diesel and the latter petrol and both have the aerodynamics of the side of a garage,  but, the Volvo is not ULEZ compliant - which means add £25 pre week for the privilege of driving to the train station and back, of a little over £100/month.. or £1,200/year. Not only that, but to preserve my partner's no claims bonus, I have to make my partner the main driver on the Volvo insurance! Which means, unless I get another vehicle, I will lose my no claims history after three months - one month before my daughter hands us back the keys and heads off to to uni. 

 

So far, I am about £300/month worse off.. At least my daughter may pick up the tab for the petrool she uses now.. and she will also buy her own lunch (when muggins here drover her to work, we woiud stop and the local supermarket so she could buy her lunch - except I would pay for it).

 

Still, wouldn't want it any other way!

 

Edited 10 hours ago by Jerry_Atrick

[spacesailor]

it's,  still an insurance scam  here in Australia. 

NRMA has a higher policy price for pensioners !,

 Because

Pensioners don't pay full registration cost .

spacesailor

[red750]

Just fitted a front and rear dashcam to my Astra after watching all the idiots on the road.I have to mind my P's and Q's. Like most dashcams I guess, it records the date, time, GPS co-ordinates and speed in the bottom corner of the video. If I get incorrectly photographed I can prove I wasn't speeding, or go through a red light.