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A new parking study commissioned by RAC Direct Insurance suggests car park prangs are costing UK motorists £2.4 billion each year. The study found that over half of all motorists have either damaged another car, or had their own car bumped in a car park, with supermarkets the most common places for dents to occur.

Almost three quarters of these drivers have been the victim of a hit and run car park prang, in which they have returned to their car to discover it scraped but with no contact details left by the offending motorist.

On average, motorists pay £293.57 to fix their car park prang and over 800,000 drivers have had to spend over £1,000 to repair the damage.

A tenth of all UK motorists, and one in five drivers aged 25-34, still admit to driving off after causing a prang without leaving a note and the reasons given by men and women for doing a runner are very different: Three quarters of men don’t think a small prang is a big deal, compared to two thirds of women. Twice as many men than women drive off because they don’t want their insurance premiums to rise. A quarter of male motorists, and one in ten female drivers, do a runner because their car has been a victim of a previous hit and run so they don’t feel like they need to leave their own contact details.

Women are twice as likely to leave because they say they “felt guilty” than men; women are also more likely to be afraid of confrontation.

The research also uncovered the typical profile of a hit and run car park ‘pranger’ – motorists, it suggests, should be most wary of women aged 25-34, driving small blue hatchbacks. The least likely offenders are men aged 45-54, driving yellow trucks or vans.

And motorists who live in the North East, and do their weekly supermarket shopping on a Saturday, should also watch out as this is the most likely time and place for a car park run-in. The safest place and time to park in Britain is in a leisure centre car park in the South West of England on a Sunday.

RAC Direct Insurance’s Rob Wilson concludes: “Many minor car park prangs cause damage that falls below the excess on a driver’s comprehensive policy, so RAC Direct Insurance recommends that motorists check whether their car insurance policy includes “Legal Expenses” cover, which can be used to help claim back the cost of minor repairs from the culprit’s own insurers.”

The typical person from the UK currently has two credit cards, new research indicates.

Data gathered by Abbey indicates that the average number of credit cards that a British consumer holds is two, but that 22 per cent of people have three or more.

Furthermore, people generally have between one and two cards which they have not used at all in the last year.

Abbey’s research also found that 20 per cent of people said that a cash back feature was the thing they looked for first when applying for a new credit card. Other popular features included a low ARP (16 per cent), shopping discounts (six per cent) and Airmiles (four per cent).

“Unless a person is using all of their credit cards, many don’t want to keep them up and running,” explained Roger Lovering, managing director of Santander Cards.

“In the current climate, people are becoming more and more savvy about the impact numerous cards have on their credit rating, and a significant number of cardholders are now looking to consolidate all their credit cards.”

Figures from the British Bankers’ Association (BBA) revealed that credit card borrowing dropped by £100 million in August

THE beleaguered subprime mortgage market in the UK has been dealt another blow, by an investigation claiming to have uncovered evidence of serious mis-selling.

Borrowers have been told to stretch their incomes to take out loans much bigger than they can realistically afford, according to a BBC File on 4 radio programme broadcast last night.

Half of all subprime mortgages in the UK are estimated to be self-certification loans - where borrowers state their incomes, which the lenders will not always check. This is intended to help such groups as the self-employed and those who derive some income from state benefits.

A former mortgage broker told the BBC that inflating the client’s income is seen as an easy way for some advisers to get a deal approved. And one borrower whose real income was £25,000 said he was advised to double that on his mortgage application to obtain a loan of more than eight times his salary.

A spokesman for the Financial Services Authority said: “We are determined to cut down on mortgage fraud. Based on our investigations and on information received from lenders and whistleblowers we have banned a number of brokers who have been involved in knowingly overstating the income of mortgage applicants and we will continue to crack down on this abuse.”

Industry experts in Scotland say that while there may be the occasional case of this type of mis-selling it is unlikely to be widespread.

John Postlethwaite, consultant at Punter Southall Financial Management in Edinburgh, told The Scotsman: “I would be surprised if this isn’t happening but I’ve not come across any clients who have wanted to lie about their income. Lenders should have systems in place to pick this up. They should spot if a postman is claiming to earn £100,000.”

Postlethwaite added that the problem was likely to be less pronounced in Scotland because house price inflation had not stretched affordability to the same extent as in some areas in England, especially the south-east.

David Watson, consultant at Savills Private Finance in Edinburgh, said: “I’d be very surprised if it’s happening on a big scale. As with any industry there is probably the odd ‘bad apple’ and it looks like some brokers have been encouraging borrowers to lie.

“Most of the big lenders in these fields say that arrears for their subprime mortgages are not that much greater than for their mainstream business so this would back up the fact that, in the main, people are borrowing within their means.”

But the investigation will put further pressure on subprime lenders and borrowers. This month Victoria Mortgages became the first UK subprime lender to go into administration.

THE beleaguered subprime mortgage market in the UK has been dealt another blow, by an investigation claiming to have uncovered evidence of serious mis-selling.

Borrowers have been told to stretch their incomes to take out loans much bigger than they can realistically afford, according to a BBC File on 4 radio programme broadcast last night.

Half of all subprime mortgages in the UK are estimated to be self-certification loans - where borrowers state their incomes, which the lenders will not always check. This is intended to help such groups as the self-employed and those who derive some income from state benefits.

A former mortgage broker told the BBC that inflating the client’s income is seen as an easy way for some advisers to get a deal approved. And one borrower whose real income was £25,000 said he was advised to double that on his mortgage application to obtain a loan of more than eight times his salary.

A spokesman for the Financial Services Authority said: “We are determined to cut down on mortgage fraud. Based on our investigations and on information received from lenders and whistleblowers we have banned a number of brokers who have been involved in knowingly overstating the income of mortgage applicants and we will continue to crack down on this abuse.”

Industry experts in Scotland say that while there may be the occasional case of this type of mis-selling it is unlikely to be widespread.

John Postlethwaite, consultant at Punter Southall Financial Management in Edinburgh, told The Scotsman: “I would be surprised if this isn’t happening but I’ve not come across any clients who have wanted to lie about their income. Lenders should have systems in place to pick this up. They should spot if a postman is claiming to earn £100,000.”

Postlethwaite added that the problem was likely to be less pronounced in Scotland because house price inflation had not stretched affordability to the same extent as in some areas in England, especially the south-east.

David Watson, consultant at Savills Private Finance in Edinburgh, said: “I’d be very surprised if it’s happening on a big scale. As with any industry there is probably the odd ‘bad apple’ and it looks like some brokers have been encouraging borrowers to lie.

“Most of the big lenders in these fields say that arrears for their subprime mortgages are not that much greater than for their mainstream business so this would back up the fact that, in the main, people are borrowing within their means.”

But the investigation will put further pressure on subprime lenders and borrowers. This month Victoria Mortgages became the first UK subprime lender to go into administration.

People who immigrate to Britain may need educating about how to stay safe on the roads, potentially avoiding claims on their car insurance.

According to the Daily Mail, police officers are warning that immigrants from eastern Europe may not be fully aware of drink driving restrictions in the UK.

“We are seeing an increase in the number of foreign nationals being arrested for drink driving and speeding,” said Chief Inspector Rick Dowell, head of Dorset Police’s traffic unit.

In addition, some immigrants have trouble reading road signs, which may also put their car insurance premiums at risk, while others may not be familiar with enforced drink driving legislation, especially those from Baltic states.

He stated that officers feel that much of this may be rectified with education.

In response to the findings, the force is considering the option of introducing a driver awareness course for new arrivals from eastern Europe.

Meanwhile Cambridgeshire Police have prepared guidelines for migrant workers outlining the UK’s stance on drink driving.

Kwik-Fit Insurance provides car insurance customers with a discount of up to 20 per cent when you get a quote online.

The beleaguered subprime mortgage market in the UK has been dealt another blow, by an investigation claiming to have uncovered evidence of serious mis-selling.

Borrowers have been told to stretch their incomes to take out loans much bigger than they can realistically afford, according to a BBC File on 4 radio programme broadcast last night.

Half of all subprime mortgages in the UK are estimated to be self-certification loans - where borrowers state their incomes, which the lenders will not always check. This is intended to help such groups as the self-employed and those who derive some income from state benefits.

A former mortgage broker told the BBC that inflating the client’s income is seen as an easy way for some advisers to get a deal approved. And one borrower whose real income was £25,000 said he was advised to double that on his mortgage application to obtain a loan of more than eight times his salary.

A spokesman for the Financial Services Authority said: “We are determined to cut down on mortgage fraud. Based on our investigations and on information received from lenders and whistleblowers we have banned a number of brokers who have been involved in knowingly overstating the income of mortgage applicants and we will continue to crack down on this abuse.”

Industry experts in Scotland say that while there may be the occasional case of this type of mis-selling it is unlikely to be widespread.

John Postlethwaite, consultant at Punter Southall Financial Management in Edinburgh, told The Scotsman: “I would be surprised if this isn’t happening but I’ve not come across any clients who have wanted to lie about their income. Lenders should have systems in place to pick this up. They should spot if a postman is claiming to earn £100,000.”

Postlethwaite added that the problem was likely to be less pronounced in Scotland because house price inflation had not stretched affordability to the same extent as in some areas in England, especially the south-east.

David Watson, consultant at Savills Private Finance in Edinburgh, said: “I’d be very surprised if it’s happening on a big scale. As with any industry there is probably the odd ‘bad apple’ and it looks like some brokers have been encouraging borrowers to lie.

“Most of the big lenders in these fields say that arrears for their subprime mortgages are not that much greater than for their mainstream business so this would back up the fact that, in the main, people are borrowing within their means.”

But the investigation will put further pressure on subprime lenders and borrowers. This month Victoria Mortgages became the first UK subprime lender to go into administration.

Adverse Credit, Mortgage Arrears, CCJs, No Proof of Income, Self Cert

Britain’s treasury chief says he wants new, American-style guarantees to protect savers’ money after the Bank of England’s effort to bail out Northern Rock — one of Britain’s biggest mortgage lenders — sparked panic among depositorsCustomers line up to withdraw cash from a Northern Rock branch during the height of the crisis

The announcement is the latest consequence of the crisis afflicting Northern Rock, which has reportedly seen the bank absorb £3 billion ($6 billion) in publicly funded loans and raised questions about how Britain’s banking system is managed.

Treasury chief Alistair Darling told The Times of London he was considering U.S.-style deposit insurance, which would protect customers’ money in the event of their bank’s collapse. He did not give a figure, but The Times quoted him as saying a £100,000 guarantee was a possibility.

Under current regulations, only the first £2,000 of British bank customers’ money is fully guaranteed, while the next £33,000 is guaranteed up to 90 percent. Darling told The Times those protections were inadequate.

Darling and other officials have come under fire for their handling of the crisis, which first became public on September 14 when the Bank of England announced it had made funds available to Northern Rock because the company was having trouble getting loans from other banks still smarting from the collapse of the U.S. subprime mortgage market.

Government officials tried to reassure the public that Northern Rock was still solvent, but worried customers ignored the advice and lined up at the bank’s branches to withdraw their savings as the value of the company’s shares collapsed.

Bank of England Governor Mervyn King came in for further criticism when he announced plans to inject funds into the longer-term money market, a major policy U-turn analysts said could have eased pressure on Northern Rock if made earlier.

Angry lawmakers grilled King on Thursday about why he failed to prevent a run on deposits, and the chairman of the committee investigating the crisis said Darling and other regulators would also be asked to testify.

The Financial Times said Saturday that Northern Rock has so far been forced to borrow about £3 billion in publicly funded loans. Northern Rock Chief Executive Adam Applegarth had previously said his company wanted to borrow substantial sums of money from the Bank of England, but did not say how much.

A Bank of England spokeswoman said the £3 billion figure was speculative.

“What happens is that various commentators have looked at our balance sheets and seen that it’s expanded,” the spokeswoman said, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with bank policy. “They’ve gone and made a supposition out of an expansion in the balance sheet.”

A Northern Rock spokeswoman refused to discuss the report.

“We don’t comment on corporate activity of that nature,” company spokeswoman Jemma Rundle said

Kwik-Fit is launching what it claims is the UK’s first “green” car service to help its cutomers reduce their carbon footprint.

The “Go Green” service costs an extra £29 on top of the price of an interim or full service but includes a number of extra checks and enhancements that the company says will make cars more environmentally friendly.

As part of the Go Green service, which launches this week, Kwik-Fit will add a fuel treatment to tanks that cleans the engine and ensures it burns cleanly and efficiently.

It will also check emissions for improper gases and donate £10 of the extra £29 to carbon offsetting activity organised by the CarbonNeutral Company.

Go Green takes 20 minutes longer than a regular service but motorists also receive an information pack about the CarbonNeutral Company offsetting scheme and a certificate to mark the offsetting of one tonne of carbon.

Kwik-Fit director of customer services David White says: “Go Green is a way for those motorists who are concerned about the damage their car is inflicting on the environment to do something about it.” He also urges rival car servicing companies to follow Kwik-Fit’s lead.

Earlier this month, Kwik-Fit appointed independent agency TBG London to handle its digital media planning and buying account following a pitch. TBG will work to promote Kwik-Fit Insurance through a range of online advertising and attempt to drive traffic to the company’s website.

Home repossessions could rocket by the end of the year as lenders of sub-prime mortgages push up their interest rates and clamp down on easy credit terms.As many as 250,000 homeowners with poor credit histories might have to pay more or risk losing their homes as the after-effects of the Northern Rock debacle and the global credit crunch forced lenders to impose new restrictions on their loans, according to mortgage brokers.

Experts said lenders were in no mood to take risks and tens of thousands of homeowners would find they could no longer afford their mortgages when their fixed-rate deals came to an end. The run-up to Christmas would be a crucial period as specialist lenders pushed their rates up and refused loans to customers with the worst credit problems.

The sub-prime sector represents around 1m (9%) of the 11.7m mortgages in the UK. Traditionally a niche market dominated by self-employed borrowers, it has grown rapidly after lenders targeted people who would find it hard to qualify for a conventional loan. These include those who have missed payments on mortgages or credit cards, had county court judgments against them, or have a small income.

Until recently lenders could borrow cheaply, and sub-prime loans were only marginally more expensive than high street mortgages. But the freeze on lending by major banks to each other has pushed up borrowing costs. The Northern Rock crisis has made the situation worse, leaving sub-prime lenders with no alternative but to withdraw their loans or dramatically increase the price.

Mortgage brokers said around a quarter of borrowers were in the “seriously adverse” catagory with more than six months’ arrears on their mortgage, unpaid utility bills and credit cards.

The Bank of England has played down warnings of a sub-prime mortgage crisis in the UK. But Ray Boulger of Britain’s largest mortgage broker, John Charcol, said: “There will be many people who will find their mortgage unaffordable. There will be others who cannot get a mortgage at all because lending criteria have changed.”

HOMEOWNERS may benefit from the crisis at Northern Rock as analysts speculated UK interest rates may have peaked.

The cost of fixed-rate mortgages has been edging down during the past few weeks, and the trend continued yesterday with predictions the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) could cut interest rates in the coming months.

The US Federal Reserve on Tuesday cut the cost of borrowing by 0.5 per cent to 4.75 per cent to prevent a recession, while in the UK minutes for the MPC’s September meeting showed the rate-setters had voted unanimously to hold rates at 5.75 per cent as they decided that inflation risks had “probably receded”.

With inflation running at 1.8 per cent in August - below the Bank’s 2 per cent target - some economists predicted rates could be on the way down later this year.

Ray Boulger, of mortgage broker John Charcol, said people who did not need the certainty of fixed monthly payments would still be better off taking out a tracker. He said he would go for a deal that did not include early repayment charges so that people could switch to a fixed-rate deal when they wanted to.

Meanwhile, it emerged that the high-street bank Abbey was piloting a deal offering a 100 per cent mortgage plus a secured loan of up to £25,000, joining only a handful of lenders who advance 100 per cent.