News from The Big Red L Company

Learner Driver Insurance from �85 per month

Sat, 15 Oct 2011 13:12:00 EDT

Learner drivers are actually cheaper to insure than someone who has recently passed their driving test.
We recommend that you use Collingwood Learners who are one of the UK's premier insurers of young drivers.

We believe the best way to become a safe driver is to ensure pupils get the

widest experience and exposure of driving before taking their driving test.
The government says that on average a pupil needs 47 hours of lessons with a driving instructor and 22 hours with friends and family.

It tends to be less with an intensive course and we can really help you

by providing you with guidance for taking out your kids and spouses, we can give them lessons in your car and even have you sat in the back.

New High Grade Driving Instructor Directory

Fri, 07 Oct 2011 14:29:00 EDT

The Big Red L Company has just launched the first phase of its exclusive High Grade Instructor Directory. Slowly but surely we are moving away from the traditional 'franchised driving instructor' and identifying independent instructors that can get better results than those with lower government gradings. Check it out and call us if you want to know more. My number is 01303 279755 or you can email me on tony@bigredl.co.uk. Regards, Tony

Photoshoot from central reservation

Sun, 17 Jul 2011 14:36:00 EDT

A group of Japenese tourists were recently found by police in the central section of the very busy A303 taking photos of Stone Henge. Police soon discovered that they had mistaken a nearby speed camera sign for a place where you can take photos.

Swindon driver with 39 penalty points still on road

Thu, 05 May 2011 17:28:00 EDT

A Swindon motorist has 39 penalty points on his or her licence - the most in Great Britain - but not been banned. This BBC article shows how many people remain on the road dispite numerous driving offenses.

How To Drive In The Snow

Thu, 06 Jan 2011 07:02:00 EDT

DRIVERS across most of icy Britain have been skidding and sliding to their destinations this week. While the best vehicles to tackle the slippery stuff are 4x4s, rear-wheel-drive performance brands such as BMW and Porsche struggle in this kind of weather. But even an off-roader can be lethal in the wrong hands. As motoring expert Peter Rodger says: "A 4x4 driven badly becomes just a larger vehicle sliding out of control." Peter, chief examiner at the Institute Of Advanced Motorists - which trains people to be better drivers - says that after 4x4s, the best cars for winter weather are front-wheel-drive, with rear-wheel-drive cars harder to control. He says: "In front-wheel-drive cars the engine is over the axle and that weight gives the car more traction compared to a rear-wheel-drive car." Automatics are another nightmare in the snow. Go for manual - they give you more control and you can change gear to help slow down rather than resorting to sharp braking...

Snow and Ice = Cancelled driving tests

Tue, 21 Dec 2010 15:52:00 EDT

The bad weather affects us all and just when you think you are ready to pass your driving test you get a big whump of snow. Have a read of our link to the DSA to see what to do next. You will also find it helpful to discuss with your instructor, so please give them a call as well.

Vehicle mileages being lowered, MOTs reveal

Fri, 03 Dec 2010 04:27:00 EDT

More than 600,000 cars on Britain's roads have been "clocked" so they show lower mileages, the BBC has learned. When vans and motorbikes are taken into account, MOT data shows the official mileage of 716,291 vehicles is lower than a year earlier. The figures have prompted fears that large numbers of drivers are being misled about used cars' true mileage. The Department of Business, Innovation and Skills insists existing laws are sufficient to deal with the problem.

New super ASSET speed cameras

Wed, 10 Nov 2010 05:42:00 EDT

This is the chilling new super speed camera heading for Britain�s roads � which can catch motorists committing five different offences at the same time. The ASSET camera can film inside a vehicle and see if the driver is wearing a seatbelt and can also measure distances between cars to identify tailgating. As well as speeding, the device reads number plates and can instantly recognise cars with out-of-date tax discs and no insurance. The trailer-mounted device � the first to detect multiple offences at the same time � is connected to police computers via GPS and can instantly process prosecutions.

Campaign to Lower Residential Speed Limits

Fri, 08 Oct 2010 08:21:00 EDT

A campaign is under way to lower speed limits to 20mph in urban areas, but what's going to make drivers slow down? A bossy road sign, a hump in the road or a three-piece suite parked in the road? Living room The "living room" challenge: Who really owns the road? There's no reason that traffic calming should be boring or without a sense of humour, says children's author and traffic campaigner, Ted Dewan. And using his Oxford residential street as a test laboratory, Mr Dewan has been working on more creative ways to reduce traffic speed. "People are too used to being scolded by warning signs telling them about lethal speed and driving. It's like 'tell me something new'. But they're not used to having their wit engaged," he says. So in a spirit that combines a sense of entertainment with a serious intent, he has come up with the idea of "folk traffic calming". This is where art installations meet road safety, a kind of sleeping policeman that's been influenced by Damien Hirst...

Independent Driving - Part of the Driving Test from Oct4th 2010

Mon, 20 Sep 2010 06:15:00 EDT

It's just a short 7 minute section of the test where you will be asked to either follow signs to a different location or asked to follow no more than 3 directions as shown to a candidate in a diagram form. We've been teaching this for years. Personally I find a part of the town where a pupil is unfamiliar and ask them to find there own way home. Don't Panic!

Changes to the driving test

Thu, 09 Sep 2010 03:07:00 EDT

Please click here for details of a story on the BBC