At Indigo Car Hire, one of our busiest locations in the UK to collect a Car Hire is of course London Heathrow Airport. With many long haul flights arriving 24 hours a day it is certainly a prime location for visitors arriving into the UK.

With the London 2012 Olympic games starting on 27th July, less than 50 days away now, there are growing concerns surrounding massive queues and delays at Heathrow Airport during the spectacular sporting events this summer in London.

We at Indigo have had many customers, who have arranged their car hire at Heathrow Airport, informing us of their anxieties surrounding these huge lines and massive delays. They have informed us that they are apprehensive that a normally routine journey through baggage claims and border control may now become an even more strenuous situation than normal.

Is there really reason enough reason for all of this concern this early on or is it just another situation just like the fuel crisis and panic buying from a few months ago? Well the UK Border patrol seems to think that there is cause for concern, they have stated that they will be increasing the number of staff at the border control in Heathrow Airport to make the flow of passengers smooth, safe and less problematic.

Some people are saying that the Olympics is just the catalyst which has made the Border Agency and the airlines aware of a situation that has been going on for many years previously. Personally we at Indigo believe that although delays are often unavoidable, they could maybe be handled a little better, whether this be by employing more staff at the Border Agency, like they have planned to do during the Olympic period, or alternatively arrange a better and more efficient way to deal with a large events.

One of the worst things that can happen when you have just got off of a long flight and it turns out that you end up waiting for an eternity trying to get through customs. The last thing you need is to be waiting around for your car hire as well which is why at Indigo, we always ensure that things go smoothly and are problem free. This is and always has been of great importance to both Indigo and our customers.

Manchester Airport have announced that they have “learnt lessons” after running out of fuel for the first time in its history!

Around 30 flights were delayed or disrupted by this lack of fuel, which was caused by a pipeline, from the Stanlow oil refinery in Ellesmere Port, Cheshire that flows directly to the Airport, which had to be turned off on the early hours of Wednesday morning due to a batch of fuel which was contaminated.

With the huge influx of passengers and heightened business over the Bank Holiday period, all the reserve fuel tanks supplies at Manchester Airport  were completely depleted by around 5pm on Thursday.

Around 13 flights were delayed as they the planes did not have enough fuel to depart whereas around 17 flights had to make unscheduled stops throughout Europe to make fuelling stops.

Airport bosses have now begun talks with the airlines and fuel companies to see why this situation arose and to establish ways to prevent it occurring again.

A Which? Survey today found that many people are getting stung for parking their vehicles at the airport car parks; some providers of this service are charging ridiculous amounts of money for leaving your vehicle at the airport. Please read on for some helpful advice and tips on how to avoid this.

When leaving your car at the airport, charges are to be expected. But when the cost of your car parking, surpasses that of the cost of your flights, it begins to get rather preposterous.

Parking at Heathrow Airport can cost around £60 to £70 for the week if booked in advance however if you turn up on the day this price can more than double and be in the region of £120 upwards. That is an increase of nearly 100%.

By booking your parking at Gatwick Airport in advance you can expect to pay around £41, but if you do not pre-book then you could be looking at around £91.00. The same applies at other airports too. At Manchester you can book early for around £36.00 but if you are not prepared and pay on the day then you could be looking at around £100.

A few top tips when arranging your car parking at Airports in the UK:

• Always check around for prices – Check locally based suppliers like for example, Airparks who are based approximately 4 miles from Glasgow Airport. Often you can find that the off airport suppliers are much cheaper than the ones based on site.
• Book In Advance – It seems like with many things the earlier you book, the better deal you get. Always arrange your car parking in advance. You do not want to get charged more than 100% extra for your car parking on the day. In every possible instance please book as early as possible to avoid disappointment and price hikes.
• Check with Hotels – If you are staying at a hotel at the airport it is worthwhile checking with them as they sometimes have deals for car parking with the room packages.
• Check Transfer Times for Shuttle Buses – If you are travelling at unsociable hours then it is best to check that the buses stay regular throughout the night.
• Balance Price against Security – Most of the Car Park companies have CCTV installed as well as guarded patrols, local services may be less secure, so always check first and make sure that your vehicle will be secure as generally if there is a problem then it is your responsibility  not theirs.

 So follow these steps and you can be sure that your car parking will not only be at a reasonable cost, but also you will be safe in the knowledge that your vehicle is secure.

Unite Members belonging to five companies, namely Tesco, Sainsbury’s, BP, Shell and Esso have all voted for strike action over working conditions and pensions.  Although no date has yet been set for a strike many people are still worrying that there will be no fuel available for when they need it, this is the reason why everyone is running around in a mad frenzy.

During my driving time I have experienced this kind of situation a few times now. Back in winter we had the same situation with food, because there was a light flurry of snow everyone rushed out to get bread, milk and basic essentials in case their food could not reach the shops. This time it is all over fuel and industrial action again.

I personally believe that the actions following any mention of a strike are pointless as every time people go on a mad rush to obtain something like fuel, it causes massive uproar and eventually nothing comes of the strike.  If the tanker drivers were to go on strike it would not be the end of the world, we have come through fuel strikes before and no doubt we will do in the future.

Indigo Car Hire manager Cherie Walker believes that “instead of panic buying, people should be more careful with how they use their petrol.”

Another concern that myself and Cherie have is the fact that people are being advised to store petrol in jerry cans in their homes and garages. This is a huge concern as any naked flame that goes anywhere near those jerry cans then this can cause a massive explosion, which is a serious risk to people’s welfare and property. I would like to advise people not to store large amount of petrol or diesel in their homes for the aforementioned reason.

There is no reason to stockpile fuel in large quantities as there will always be a large supply for a long time to come yet. What I would like to advise people is to prepare yourselves for the future and most importantly, do not panic!

Stansted Airport is well known as a popular airport for catching budget flights to the UK and some of the biggest low cost airlines such as Ryanair and Easyjet have flights regularly landing there.

One of the points that makes Stansted so popular is it’s close proximity to London which makes it a great option for those travelling to the city but not wanting to pay a premium for flying into Heathrow or Gatwick.

A great option for getting from Stansted Airport into London has always been the Stansted Express which runs regularly from the airport into the centre of London and takes less than an hour.
A new service has recently been launched that makes this service even more convenient as you can now order a mobile ticket online which can send a barcode to your phone which is scanned on board to verify your purchase.

You will still have the option of purchasing a ticket directly from the sales desk at the airport or printing off a ticket at home but it is great to have this additional option to make the process quicker and easier.

If you are flying into airport and travelling further afield then don’t forget that we provide car hire at Stansted Airport and a number of our suppliers are able to provide one way hires.