Silliest Excuses For Not Having A Tax Disc

Introduced in 1889 the vehicle licence or more commonly known as tax disc is a circular disc that is three inches in diameter and is to be displayed on a vehicle as evidence it has paid its vehicle excise duty. As you can most likely imagaine there are a few people who try to avoid paying for a tax disc, surprisingly it’s not as high as I first assumed with 99% of vehicle owners paying their tax or declaring their vehicle off road.

There is a few who ruin it however but we aren’t going to go into depth about that, we want to look at the lighter side of people who “forget” to pay their tax. The DVLA who are the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency are the ones in charge of ensuring that everyone has a tax disc. If you are found by the DVLA without a tax disc then you can face a heavy fine which can further escalate into being clamped, impounded or ultimately crushed. What comes hand in hand with strict rules? Excuses, although a small percentage there are a handful of people who still get caught with a tax disc every now again and with such serious implications who can blame them for having a go at weaselling their way out of it?

The DVLA receive several excuses, explanations and other various attempts to get out of paying the fine for not having a tax disc, some of these are hilarious. The DVLA have comically compiled the top silliest excuses for not having a tax disc for our own personal entertainment. So what are some of the silliest and strangest excuses for flouting the law?

5. I had man flu and couldn’t go to the Post Office.
A the famous man flu strikes again, a very legitimate excuse indeed. I do however think that your not tricking the DVLA with this one.

4. I fell out of a tree picking plums and broke both my arms.
Viable however again it didn’t make it past the DVLA this time. Maybe you should try again next year, if you have a car.

3. I’ve been out of the country for four months and I forgot where I parked my car.
It happens to the best of us, doesn’t it? Fortunately for you I think the DVLA has located it for you.

2. My dog ate the reminder.
A personal childhood favourite, isn’t it everyone’s? Some people just never grow up.

1. I was on my way to the Post Office to tax the car and called into the betting shop – there was a horse running at Doncaster called “Don’t Do It” so I bet on that with my car tax money instead – it lost.
Maybe you should have listened to the name “Don’t Do It”. Ohhh wait I see what you did there, very funny. You’re still getting a fine.

All these excuses didn’t manage to trick the DVLA despite the obvious thought that had gone into some of them. Its easier than ever before to tax your car with digital services also available any time of day or night so the moral of the story is that you should pay your car tax as chances are you won’t get away with it, or be able to trick the DVLA that easily, they’ve heard it all before, judging by these excuses anyway.

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Top Towing Vehicles Of The Year

Top Towing Vehicle Of The Year 2014

Voted first choice by many caravan enthusiasts, the Land rover Discovery has recently come out on top for being the best towing vehicle around. With prices for the vehicle starting at around £38,000, this vehicle may not be an option for many, but could save you a lot of hassle if you want to get away with your caravan with the least stress possible. The survey was carried out by The Camping and Caravanning Club.

The popularity of the vehicle is largely due to the brand’s reputation of producing strong and solid vehicles since the manufacturer first started producing vehicles. With a four wheel drive the Land rover discovery can easily pull your caravan in all terrains.  Over the past three years Land Rover has been honoured with the title of ‘Best Towcar’ and an award in the category of ‘Over 1,900kg’.

The Discovery has a Trailer Stability Assist which means that the vehicle detects when a trailer is attached, and will slow once you hit 37mph to ensure the safety of both you, the trailer and the vehicle itself. Selective breaking is used by the vehicle to prevent trailers from swaying when travelling to ensure no problems are created when towing. There is also an optional extra with the vehicle called Towing assist which includes a Surround Camera System. This is optional and predicts the trajectory of the vehicle and trailer and predicting a path for when you need to reverse the vehicle. This new technology is seen as very beneficial for those who have difficulty when reversing a towing vehicle, and allows peace of mind for drivers.

Car Hire With A Tow Bar

Here at Indigo Car Hire we can now offer car hire with a tow bar at selected locations to make towing a vehicle that little bit easier. This service is available to those over the age of 25.

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Central European Time, A Safer Time?

There are hundreds of car accidents on British roads yearly and new government estimation is that moving to CEST time would save several lives each year and prevents hundreds of accidents. So the changing of time saves lives, let’s do it straight away!

Unfortunately it’s not as easy as just changing the clocks back; it would be difficult for many if you were to just change the time. One big object is that of the aviation authority who say that they would take 5 years to adapt to such a change. Also to take into account is the wider effect to the economy and society.

Despite objections its estimated that it will save a total of 54 lives a year due to not causing as many accidents because of darkness, it’s also claimed that it would prevent around 185 serious road accidents yearly. If it’s a factor of saving lives I for one would turn my clock back all day long but obviously its unfortunately not that simple.

What would changing to CEST (or CET in winter) time mean for the UK?

CEST time is an hour ahead of our current time and CEST stands for Central European Summer Time. This would cause the roads to be lighter in the morning but darker in the night at summer, the idea behind this is that a large amount of drivers drive to work in the morning whilst it’s still dark causing several accidents, however it would be darker at night but in summer it doesn’t get darker till later anyways. The idea is one that will save lives definitely but it also have a huge effect on the UK on a whole.

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Debit Cards Without A Name

Payment Methods

We have recently had an issue with a customer that booked a car to collect from Heathrow Airport, the customer did not have a credit card so we booked her a vehicle with a supplier that we know accepts debit cards.

There are certain restictions when using debit cards which can be found here and her card passed, the booking was accepted and the customer was looking forward to arriving and collecting her car.

The problem arose when the customer arrived to collect her vehicle, the debit card provided by her bank did not have her name on it. Luckily the supplier allowed the customer to leave a cash deposit to secure the vehicle, which is a very rare thing to happen but as an Indigo customer they trusted her.

This is the first time we have come across Debit Cards Without A Name so needed to look into it further. Apparently some banks in North Amercia, Canada and Malaysia do provide debit cards that do not have the account holders name on it.

These cards can still be accepted by some suppliers but they will need proof that the card belongs to the person intending to hire the vehicle.

There is only really one way to prove that the card belongs to the hirer and that is to provide a letter of authenticity or a bank statement showing the same account details along with the holders name and address. These details must match the information on the driving licence and passport.

We have now changed our qualifying criteria to include asking our customers if their name is physically on the card, rather than asking if it is in their name as we did before.

When it comes to hiring a car with any type of debit card, the first thing you should do is contact us before getting a quote or booking a vehicle. We can qualify your card and get you booked in with a supplier that matches your needs. You can call us on +44 (0)113 880 0748, chat with us online or email us on sales@thealternativeagency.co.uk.

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Reduced Car Parking Charges In Northern Ireland

parking charges

Lower car parking charges are to be introduced into 25 locations in Northern Ireland for a trial period of up to 6 months.

In total, 93 car parks operated by Roads Service are to charge £1 for five hours parking.

Regional Development Minister Danny Kennedy said it would help attract more shoppers to towns and cities.

The initiative, which comes into operation on Saturday, was first tried over Christmas and New Year.

However, it will exclude Belfast.

Mr Kennedy said: “Local retailers have told me that they are continuing to operate in a challenging environment.

“This will support both the local economy and their efforts to encourage more shoppers back into towns and cities across Northern Ireland.”

Among the town and cities benefiting are Coleraine, Armagh, Ballymena, Enniskillen, Londonderry and Omagh.

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New Location Alanya City

Turkey has always been a tricky location for us to arrange car hire as the suppliers are limited which is why we are so happy to announce our brand new location, Alanya city. Formerly known as Alaiye the city is a very popular beach resort for holiday goers in the Mediterranean region of Turkey. Due to its popularity we really wanted firstly to see if our customers can hire cars here so we got in contact with some of the car rental within the area.

As previously stated we eventually managed to arrange this with great difficulty, however the supplier that we managed to arrange this with also allowed our customers to have a further two deals which include…

Car Hire Without A Credit – Typically when you are trying to hire a car then you will need to have a credit card in order to make the payment which can be inconvenient for several people. The deal we have managed to arrange allows you to be able to hire at Alanya with a debit card given that it meets the suppliers restrictions. As these restrictions differ, depending on the location, it is always best to call or email us prior to making a booking.

Low Deposit – One of the struggles people often encounter when wanting to hire a car is the deposit amount, deposits can be exceptionally on occasions can be exceptionally high. Often when people need to hire a car it’s at quite an expensive time as you have paid for the holiday, accommodation and the rental so the last thing you want is to have a massive deposit of up to £3,000 held on your card for the duration of your rental. The deal we arranged with the supplier means that they will only take a 200 Euro deposit significantly cheaper than most.

If you are interested in getting the best offers and deals within Alanya then simply call us on +44 (0)113 880 0748 or email us at sales@thealternativeagency.co.uk and we will be happy to help arrange this for you.

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Top destinations for walking holidays

walking holidays

Want to experience nature at its absolute best? No two walking holidays are the same, whether you want a luxurious walk or a challenging climb these holidays are for you.

There are several top walking destinations both in the UK and Overseas, we have narrowed down some of the top destinations we think you may enjoy.

Hadrian’s Wall – England (Moderate)

This lovely walk starts in Newcastle by the side of the beautiful River Tyne where modern life meets traditional. Eventually passing by the jaw droppingly wonderful rural town of Lanercost and as you go through the steel rigg you come upon Chollerford where their is a fully maintained Roman fort, something you will never experience anywhere else in the world.

Walks in the sound of music – Austria (Easy)

A delightful themed walk of “the sound of music”.Have the once in a lifetime chance to hike in the footsteps of Empress Elisabeth, both the Empress of Austria and Queen of Hungary and wife to Franz Joseph. The walk will also take you past the majestic lake St.Wolfgang, this historic hike is not one to be missed.

Costa Blanca – Spain (Hard)

Lovely winter sunshine across this challenging walk in the Costa Blanca containing many mountain climbs and coastal walks, but don’t let that put you off. There are many amazing features such as great sandy beaches, small hidden bays, towering cliffs and headlands its the perfect opportunity to put your skills to the test and enjoy doing it at the same time, with one of the driest summers in the world who would want to miss out on that?

Rhine Gorge – Germany (Moderate)

A self guided hike passing through historic famous villages such as Oberwesel, Bacharach, St.Goar, Boppard and Rhens. Experiencing all different walks of life through the very varied German towns, giving you the experience of both old life germany and life as we know it today a walk through history, learn whilst you walk.

Rural Kent Walk – England (Easy)

A walk made to discover the true heart of Kent, with its beautiful countrysides, lengthy history and local crafts. Rural Kent is a magnificent place once you go you will not want to leave. The cottages add to the delightful look of the countryside giving it a very historic feel like you’ve stepped back in time a refreshing getaway from life in 2019 as we know it.

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South Africa Car Hire For Younger Drivers

We had a recent enquiry from one of our potential customers about whether they can hire a car in South Africa, the problem was that they were a young driver aged 19 and ideally wanted a low young driver fee.

We contacted a few companies located at the main South African airports in order to try and arrange some sort of deal that would allow young drivers to hire, typically 19 is an age that you would really struggle anywhere in the world.

However against the odds we eventually managed to find a supplier willing to allow this customer to hire, and we can happily announce that we can now hire to people the age of 18 given that they have held their licence for a year prior to hiring with us.

On top of already arranging a young driver deal for South Africa we also managed to arrange a few more…

Low Deposit Car Hire: Deposits are usually a big problem as they can range as high as approximately £3,000 which for many is just not an acceptable amount to have blocked on their card for the duration of your rental. This same supplier we have deals with have deposits starting as low as £80!

Debit Card Car Hire: This is another problem when you come to rent a car, most suppliers don’t accept the use of anything other than a credit card. This supplier however have agreed that our customers can use debit cards given that they meet three main restrictions. If you want to read more about using a debit card in South Africa please click this link.

Are you interested in arranging a rental vehicle in South Africa? Being either a young driver, searching for a low deposit or trying to arrange something without a credit card can be a nightmare so just come straight to Indigo Car Hire and we will sort everything for you. Simply call our experienced and knowledgeable reservation agents on +44 (0)113 880 0748 or email them at sales@thealternativeagency.co.uk, don’t worry their friendly!

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Staycation Holidays

staycation

Who is planning a bit of a family holiday this year? You can have a great family holiday within the UK at an affordable price, here are our top picks for Staycations in the UK.

The Manor House Hotel – Devon
Perfect family holiday for a family with young children. There are all sorts of games, rides and places that the kids can socialise and make new friends. There are indoor and outdoor Game Zones for the children with slides and ball pits, or if you fancy sneaking off there is Childcare Sessions that you can leave your child in whilst they play and get fully supervised by certified employees. During this time you have a variety of choices ranging from golf on their full 18 hole golf course to spa facilities with the availability of 29 different spa treatments.

Kielder Water Lodges – Northumberland
Fantastic family adventure holiday with loads of various activities to take part in as a family. Theres a range of activities to do such as an indoor heated pool, Indoor ice skating in their ice rink or if you’re more of an outdoor adventure person there are tons more activities ranging from archery to snorkelling. Theres also a restaurant and bar within the facilities so everything is literally there for you, guaranteed fun at low prices due to their standard savers savings.

Colwell bay – Isle of White
A unique family holiday with cottage style houses and traditional facilities. Their lovely homely cottages are perfect for enjoying your holiday in style, there are also some nice facilities on the resort such as a childs play area, indoor swimming pool, tennis courses and a perfect walking path for a nice stroll with the family. Local attractions are also a very welcomed site with places such as Fort Victoria and Compton bay.

Gwel an Mor – North Cornwall
Recently voted the best holiday destination in the UK it speaks for itself, with beautiful log lodges you can sleep in comfort and warmth in picture esk style. Tons of facilities for various different things such as fitness where they have a fully equipped gym and an indoor heated swimming pool, and if that wears you down they have a fantastic sauna and jacuzzi to wind down. As for the kids they have indoor and outdoor childrens play facilities that the children will love. The perfect holiday for a family.

Kenwick Lodges – Lincolnshire
Located in the woodlands its the perfect rural getaway with the resort stretching a massive 320 acres it has everything you will ever need to have the perfect holiday. Magnificent Log cabins are more than adequate to keep the whole family happy. It has everything in terms of facilities from Techno Gyms to Steam rooms and 18 hole golf courses you can have a holiday in style and comfort.

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Driving Licence In Your Maiden Name?

As you can imagaine identification is needed to prove that you have a full licence and for various other details such as your age when you come to renting a car, another thing that is checked is that the name on the identification matches the name on the payment card. This can throw up one very specific issue if you have recently been married and your surname has changed.

When you get married there are tons of changes that you need to make and often one of the things that is left to last is changing the name on your driving licence, passport, credit or debit card. This can cause a bit of an issue when you come to hiring a car as one may not match the other and because of that you can be rejected.

There are solutions to this however; using other forms of ID can verify that you are in fact the owner of the card. Some suppliers however are stricter than others so you need to make sure that you book with a supplier that will allow you to use other forms of identification like a marriage certificate to prove your maiden name, it can be quite confusing for some and its always best to ensure that your identification is present and correct before arriving to pick up the car.

The marriage certificate must be written in Roman script meaning it can be read and understood by the supplier. This is similar to hiring a car with an international driving permit, this acts as a translation tool for the supplier.

To make sure that you don’t get stranded without a car you need to make sure that you get everything right before hand, to do this simply call us here at Indigo Car Hire. Each situation is different as to what identification they will accept so for more information contact our experienced reservation agents on +44 (0)113 880 0748 or email us at sales@thealternativeagency.co.uk and we will be happy to answer any questions that you may have about car hire and find you a solution.

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