Did You Know?

lifestyle Did You Know… by STEVE TOLMIE

All change on the highway!

Are you aware of the new Highway Code rules that came into force on January 29th?

Vehicle finance specialist Carvine has been analysing the changes. Alex Thomas, a spokesperson for the company, said: “Despite legislation and Highway Code amendments coming into force, most motorists will be unaware of the new rules.

Among the fresh set of rules is the major ‘Hierarchy of Users’ regulations. Split into three rules, H1, H2 and H3, everyone from car drivers, cyclists, horse riders and motorcyclists are affected. The government’s policy states that the new ‘H’ rules will ‘tackle some of the safety issues pedestrians encounter or perceive when walking.’

Rule H1 places greater responsibility on drivers of larger vehicles to take more care of vulnerable road users and ‘bear the greatest responsibility to take care and reduce the danger they pose to others.’ Rule H2 focuses on pedestrians crossing at junctions. Whether you’re a driver, cyclist, motorcyclist or horse rider, ‘you should give way to pedestrians crossing or waiting to cross a road into which or from you are turning.’

Lastly, Rule H3 concerns drivers and motorcyclists turning into a ‘junction or changing direction or lane.’ Motorists should not cut across and cause any cyclist, horse rider or horse-drawn vehicle to swerve or be forced to stop. Instead, you should wait until there is a safe gap before making your manoeuvre.

We’ve only got room for a summary of some of the changes here – full details about H1, 2 and 3 and other changes can be found on the official government website https://bit.ly/highwaycodegov

You can also get a summary at the Carvine website at: https://bit.ly/carvine

Name that car

When you go for a drive, do you just go in ‘the car’ or do you pull away in ‘Kermit’ or ‘ZZ Top’ or even ‘The Beast’? A new DVLA survey reveals that:

• 1 in 6 motorists surveyed name their car – and those aged 35 to 53 are most likely to do so • Disco Dave, Lady Patricia, The Beast and ZZ

Top among most unusual names • The most popular names that the survey’s 2,095 respondents gave their vehicles included Betsy, Pablo, Max, Ruby and Doris

Whatever you’ve called your beloved vehicles, you must tell DVLA you are no longer the owner when they are sold and the quickest and easiest way to do this is online at www.gov.uk/soldbought-vehicle.

Send in a picture of your car and what name you call it for the chance to win a free air freshener for your card! Email hello@lifeinmagazines.co.uk

Royal Mail Group has introduced special barcodes to stamps with the aim of connecting letters with the digital world. Barcodes can be scanned in the Royal Mail app and customers will eventually be able to watch videos, access information about services and view birthday messages and other greetings from senders.

Quality of life

A recent report compared different countries in terms of quality of life and concluded that Sweden came out top. The ‘Quality of Life Index,’ produced by Global Citizen Solutions, aims to rank countries based on the aspects that make a country ‘desirable’ for expats, international retirees and digital nomads. Categories considered include happiness, environmental factors, migration acceptance, sustainable development and levels of freedom. According to Patricia Casaburi, Managing Director of Global Citizen Solutions, Sweden has “an emphasis on the importance placed on life outside the office and on a healthy work-life balance.” Finland came second, while Britain was at number 7. The top non-European country was Canada, ranked 4th.

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