Top Car Insurance Articles

Many cyclists need to transport their bikes by car from time to time, and unless they have a spacious van or truck, it can be a difficult task — leaving chain grease on the backseats and a frustrated driver at the wheel. But with the help of a bike rack, transporting your bikes is a breeze. We’ve broken down the options to help you decide which rack is best for your car.

Basically, there are 3 different types of bike racks: the trunk rack, the roof rack, and the hitch rack. Some types don’t work on certain vehicles, so make sure to verify your car’s size and compatibility specs before making a purchase.

Trunk rack

Trunk racks typically hold between 2 and 4 bicycles and are attached to the vehicle through a series of adjustable straps and hooks. The bikes hang from horizontal arms that reach out from an A-type frame.

• Pros: Trunk racks are simple, versatile, lightweight, and easy to install and remove. They also fold down for easy storage and can fit on both sedans and hatchbacks.
• Cons: Would-be thieves can quickly cut the straps and remove the rack from your vehicle, making away with it and your bike. The rack may also damage your vehicle’s finish after sustained use.
• Ease of installation: So easy a child can do it. If you don’t have your own children, you can hire someone else’s. Or just do it yourself.

Roof rack

There are 2 types of roof racks — one mounts onto a generic roof, and the other onto factory-installed rooftop rails. Be sure to check your vehicle’s roof to determine which of these options would be best for you. Most roof racks hold 2 bicycles, but 3- and 4-bike versions are also available.

Once installed, simply lift your bicycle onto the rack and attach it. Typically, this entails resting the wheels in metal channels and raising a stabilizing bar to hook to the bike’s downtube. Some racks, however, require that you remove the bike’s front wheel and then secure its fork to a mounting point on the rack.

• Pros: Roof racks are the least susceptible to theft, and have the most streamlined look when not carrying bikes. Many roof racks are not bike-specific and therefore, can accommodate other attachments.
• Cons: They tend to be awkward for shorter people and for people without a lot of upper-body strength. They also increase your car’s height when in use, and can be problematic at drive-thrus, garages, and other low overhangs.
• Ease of installation: Medium difficulty. While handy people can generally install either type of roof rack on their own, it’s best to ask your local dealership to help you out.

Hitch rack

If your car or truck has a hitch receiver, you may want to consider a hitch rack. The most important thing to note before purchasing a hitch rack is the size of your receiver. Hitch receivers typically come in one of 2 sizes (1¼” and 2?), and your rack will (obviously) need to be the corresponding size.

This type of rack typically accommodates 2-4 bikes and is secured to the hitch receiver with a simple cotter pin. And though it’s much heavier than a trunk rack, it can be installed and removed very easily.

• Pros: Because of its increased rack weight, it’s much less susceptible to theft.
• Cons: On the flip side, its increased weight makes it cumbersome to install and remove, and it can only be used on vehicles with trailer hitches.
• Ease of installation: They’re heavy, but simple to install and remove.

Once installed, remember to lock your bikes to the rack. Many racks include a hinged closure for each bike that accommodates a padlock. If yours doesn’t, use a chain or cable lock to loop around the bikes and rack to secure them to each other.

Always choose a lock that releases with a key instead of a combination, and make sure that chains or cables are thick enough to withstand cable cutters and have coverings to protect the finishes of your bike, rack, and car. And with any rack on which the bikes hang (such as the trunk or vertical hitch rack), secure the steering columns of the bikes so they don’t spin around and knock into each other or the car while you’re in motion.

Wherever you go, drive carefully and ride with a smile!

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There’s nothing better than being able to get out on the open road in your new motorhome, and it could be even more enjoyable if you get to try it out in America. The vast nature of the place lets you enjoy your motorhome at its best, driving through miles and miles of stunning landscapes, and when you want to stop simply park up and get some sleep. Having motorhomes USA can be incredibly rewarding, but what about the insurance implications?

It probably depends on whether you intend to go to America as a tourist or if you want to pack up and move there. You’ll be able to find temporary insurance when you’re in the USA, usually worked out in terms of a daily rate, with many companies specialising in such cover. You could find an appropriate policy from a UK or USA-based broker, but if you want permanent cover you’ll probably have to look a little deeper.

Because the regulations could be difficult to decipher it’s often best to head to the experts to discuss your individual requirements. Seek out a specialist caravan insurance broker and provide them with as much information as you can – your reason for travelling, how long you want to be there, the make and model of your motorhome and anything else that seems relevant. You could even head directly to brokers in the US for first-hand advice, and you’ll either be presented with a quote or will be told how to get one.

As a British citizen it could be perfectly possible to buy and insure a motorhome in the USA, but you’ll need to do your research if you want to be sure of the specifics. As long as you do you’ll be able to find motorhomes USA and can enjoy your chosen model without having to worry, safe in the knowledge that you’re completely protected for anything that could happen when you’re out on the open road.

Everyone knows that cars have become more computerised over the last decade. In fact, the computer processing power in an average car is now considerably greater than the computers on board the original Apollo missions that took man to the moon.

Not everyone may be altogether comfortable with the idea of your car telling you how to be a better drive, but there are already half a dozen models on the road that will do exactly that, as well as offering you other useful pieces of information such as traffic conditions, road conditions, what sort of suspension you should have, when you should change gear to be more fuel efficient and a host of others.

The end aim of all of this is to make us a nation of better, more fuel efficient, drivers. For example, studies already completed using information gathered from the latest generation of cars has found that the British are the most fuel efficient drivers whilst the Spanish are the least fuel efficient and the Spanish transport network is the most tangled.

One slightly concerning aspect of this information is that it is transmitted from your car to the car manufacturers on a day to day basis, so how well you are driving, and how long your average journey is all being collected, regardless of whether you want it to or not.

However, there is one major upside of this technology which may mean that these new computerised cars are adopted quickly and with only a handful of complaints. Even in addition to telling you how to drive to save fuel, the car could also significantly reduce the amount that you have to pay in car insurance.

Being able to accurately track your average journey distance, your average speed, and generally how well you drive gives you the opportunity to directly connect the insurance company to your data, proving that you are safer than they might otherwise think you are depending on your demographic. Additionally, the car will be able to map things like ‘Give Way’ signs, that could prove whether you are culpable, or not, for an accident, making processing insurance claims a lot easier.

So far this sort of technology is very much in trial stage and big car insurance providers like Santander are yet to implement it fully. However, with the launch of several new brands of electric vehicles next year, we’re only a few months away from a computer revolution on our roads.?