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The average driver will break the Highway code without realizing or because of circumstances. I find it quite amazing that anyone can honestly say that they have never done so. It is quite easy to creep over the 30mph speed limit as you pull away from traffic lights etc. I know that in the fast car I had when I was working in town I had to drive around in 3rd gear to prevent this happening.
I have never got any points on my licence, probably because I have got away with an occasional burst of speed, or that most of my mileage has been done on country roads & lanes.
These Driver Awareness Courses are only as good as the person running them. Several years ago a family member was over the limit when breathalysed & went on one. He arrived home looking very pale & shocked and has never driven again with ANY alcohol in his system.
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Going south out of Brum on the A38 not far from where the Austin used to be the road is wide and dual carriageway. The speed limit is 30/40mph and a lot of people get busted. The reason for the limit is that it is also an accident black spot.
Going into Brighton from Lewes nr the Uni. the road is also wide, dual carriageway and 30/40 mph. Same reason, accident black spot, lots of people get busted. And so on and on ...
Going over the limit also suggest driving without due care and attention - after all there are plenty of signs and all cars have a speedometer. A lot of SatNav systems can be set up to give audible warning when you are exceeding the speed limit.
Break the limit, get busted. Zero sympathy.
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mine was £80 - I was doing 35 mph on a wide suburban road
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Never forget that the speed limits are just that - limits not advised speed.
Most of the time in urban areas the safe driving speed is quite a bit less and you can be busted for driving at, say, 30mph, in a busy shopping street when the police reckon 15-20mph a better idea.
In the countryside you can come around a bend and have in front of you a horse or pony ( with/without rider), slow tractor, pedestrians ... best to drive inside the distance you can see.Far too many people don't and pay the price.
The most important reason for having two hands on the wheel is that if something unexpected happens you can maintain control. One handed that is impossible.
SatNav systems should be in line of sight never require people to look down. Quite how this is tolerated I don't know.
More than half of people who go on d/a courses go on to collect more points :-( I personally am against DAC and cautions and would prefer zero tolerance. If they must have DAC then it should go with a 50pmh limit ( and sticker ) on the driver for a year.
But then I had my leg smashed up by a speeding hit and run taxi on a zebra crossing so I am biased. Twenty years later I still have the scars.
I have nul points :-) despite having a very quick motor :-) and have never been on a DAC. AFAIK they are quite pricey.
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I also went on one of those courses a few years back - have to say my experience differed from yours - the guy in charge, in my opinion, was an idiot - a feeling echoed by many of the other participants
When I described how, on my journey to the course along the M4, I was doing 60 mph in the slow lane - a speed I always do on the motorway, I was constantly harassed by lorries trying to make me speed up - the answer I got from the guy in charge was "If you were on my Advanced Driving course, I'd throw you off it - no one on a motorway should do less than 70 mph"
Rubbish in my opinion
My son is on the same course, same place today - I've implored him to keep his cool :-D
A colleague of his did the course and half way through stood up and said "I'd prefer to take the points than sit here any longer listening to a load of rubbish"
So I suppose it all depends on who's taking the course :-)
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Liz I had to attend a speed awareness course a couple of years ago. I agree the course is an excellent reminder of good safe driving practices.
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Speed Awareness course
Yesterday I had to go on a Speed Awareness course as I was a naughty girl in July and exceeded a 30 mph speed limit.
It was really interesting and informative and I learned a lot of safe driving tips during the 4 hr presentation/course. There was lots of interactive stuff with others there, we were sat in groups of three or four and worked together. There were two coffee breaks and coffee before we went in, so I managed to stay awake lol
One point the woman told us about was the way we hold the steering wheel She said most people don't bother with the old ten to two positions or quarter to three because power assisted steering makes it easier, so they just use one hand on the wheel and one hand on the gear stick, or hanging loose.
She told us of a lady on a previous course who had described how her husband had been killed in his car. Airbags when activated have a force of around 400 mph or more and this man had his hand on top of the steering wheel. The air bag forced his hand back into his windpipe so effectively he killed himself. How tragic was that?
I really felt the course was very useful and would be a good idea for new drivers to attend before they get caught for speeding. There were tips on how to slow your car down without braking so you can stay at the right speed and lots of other details that we forget or don't learn updated rules etc.
The course saved me getting points on my licence, never had any before and still don't have any, and you don't have to tell the insurance company so your premium stays the same.
Much better than standing around watching fireworks and getting cold,
Lizx
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