Added: 12th August 2009
In 1959, the three-point seatbelt as we know it today was created by Volvo and the manufacturer was so convinced of its safety potential
that it made the patent available for other manufacturers, and motorists, to benefit from. Although we may now take it for granted, modern technological
developments, such as seat belt pre-tensioners, are designed to work in conjunction with the same basic design of the seatbelt, so it remains the single most
important safety feature on all modern cars.
Now required by law in modern cars, it continues to protect hundreds of thousands of people from death or serious injury in car accidents every year.
For the majority of motorists, clicking the seatbelt into place is as much a part of the ritual to beginning a car journey as starting the engine.
That makes it easy to forget its lifesaving potential. However other safety systems, such as airbags, are designed to work in conjunction with seatbelts,
so it remains the most important safety device in any modern car.
Research indicates that annually about 565 people die in traffic accident through not wearing a seatbelt and, in 2007, over 300 of these might have survived had
they been belted in. Seatbelt use in cars became mandatory for front seat occupants in the UK in 1983, with further legislation in 1989 making it a requirement
for all children to wear one. In 1991 wearing a seatbelt in the back of a car also became compulsory.
Added: 16th June 2009
Voice over Internet Protocol [VoIP] is the family of technologies that allows computer networks to be used for voice applications and
enables forward looking companies to drive down their telephone call charges. JD Motors has embraced this
technology to interconnect its five operating centres and have linked up with other companies in the recovery industry to
benefit from zero cost calls. A gateway with the public telephone network is available to give low cost calls to any geographical
number in he UK.
Suppliers, business contacts and customers who are also VoIP users are welcome to interact with JD Motors using internet telephony. There
may be some technical hurdles to be overcome first, so please let us have your VoIP number [which looks like an email address]
and we will provide the necessary information so that you can route your telephone call to JD Motors over the internet.
Your point of contact on this issue is
david@jd-motors.co.uk
on DDI 01252 758960.
Added: 20th March 2009
Fuel duty is set to rise by roughly 2 pence per litre on April 1st meaning that 66 pence of the average litre of
fuel goes directly to the Treasury. The tax raised goes into a central government tax pot and not necessarily allocated
back out to motoring, so fuel tax can be spent on anything - the NHS, housing, pensions or even banking bailouts.
At the height of soaring pump prices Gordon Brown made a promise during Prime Minister's Questions on July 16th 2008
[Video clip on BBC website] not to raise
fuel duty for a year. He stated: "In recognition of the problem people face with petrol, we are freezing duty on petrol
for the full year."
Gordon Brown broke this promise in December 2008 when he added 2 pence per litre to fuel duty to offset the reduction of VAT to
15% - a move which angered UK hauliers who are able to claim fuel VAT back, but not fuel duty. He is set to break the promise
for a second time on April 1st when fuel duty on unleaded and diesel will rise 1.84 pence per litre. Including the additional
15% VAT on top this will make the rise at the pumps around 2 pence per litre.
The Treasury have said that the only time further changes to fuel duty can take place are at the next Budget - which has
been postponed from March until April 22nd, after the duty rise comes in. Odd that.
Added: 7th December 2008
 Properly inflated tyres can reduce fuel bills but in a
recent survey less than half the motorists interviewed hadn't checked their pressures in the last month with many unaware that
under-inflated recommended pressures could increase fuel consumption by 5%.
By keeping tyres at their correct pressure, motorists can travel further on each tank of petrol and help reduce Co2
emissions. When tyres are under-inflated, the contact patch with the road surface increases, causing increased drag, which in
turn places more load on the engine.
Checking tyre pressure is a straightforward procedure, yet many drivers simply don't make time for it. Taking just a few minutes
every month to check the pressure of each tyre and adjust it to the recommended level, significant improvements to road safety
will be made and motorists could also save money through reducing fuel consumption.
View the BBC's Tyre Pressure Report.
90% of British motorists don't know their vehicle's correct tyre inflation pressure so here is a handy search facility provided
by www.tyre-shopper.co.uk that will return your tyre pressures and the type of tyres that you should have fitted.
If you are unsure of how to check your tyre pressures, call into JD Motors for a free tyre safety check.
Added: 10th October 2008
The A3 Hindhead project is a major UK road improvement scheme that will complete a dual carriage way road system between London and Portsmouth.
This new section of road is scheduled to be opened in August 2011 and will be four miles [6.5km] long and includes a 1.1 mile [1.8 km] section
of twin bored tunnel.
The Highways Agency is committed to keeping traffic moving along the 7½ miles of associated road works on the existing A3 between Thursley and
Liphook and will call upon the major recovery operatives in the area to clear blockages.
There is no free recovery service through these road works, so drivers need to contact their motoring organisation if their vehicle becomes immobilised;
on average seven trucks and twenty-five light vehicles do so every week along this stretch of road. Service vans or recovery vehicles from
JD Motors, Midhurst Engineering or
McAllisters Recovery will normally attend within
forty minutes to get you, and the traffic, moving smoothly as quickly as possible. If your vehicle needs to be brought back to our garage, help and
assistance will be given to get you to your destination even if it's outside normal working hours.
The Highways Agency produces an occasional newsletter on this road improvement scheme and links to the electronic version
of each one can be found on this page: A3 Hindhead Scheme Newsletters.
Added: 5th September 2008
Available for sale to visitors to our Alton premises is a portable, convenient and highly flexible directional warning chevron light panel that
doesn't need external wiring. With 8 magnetic points and 8 fixing eyelets this LED warning chevron panel can be attached to almost anything,
providing a cheap highly effective attention grabbing flashing light that can be used for roadside vehicle breakdowns. This light panel
measures 32" wide by 18" high.
It's non-rigid design means it can be deployed on any size or shape of vehicle and then after use be stowed conveniently in its own
holder. Being flexible it's extremely durable and highly resistant to vibration and shock.
JD Motors recommends you use a breakdown recovery service when your car is immobilised, particularly on roads with fast moving traffic. Even changing
an offside wheel is fraught with dangers with 40-tonne trucks thundering past inches from your backside! Instead deploy this directional
warning chevron light panel to protect your vehicle and then you call your motoring organisation from a safe distance away. Help will
usually arrive in just over ½ hour.
Added: 12th August 2008
As personal finances become squeezed the family car becomes a target to save money, whether it is on servicing or repairs. Unfortunately
you may be putting your life at risk by ignoring warning lights on your dashboard and 'strange' noises under the bonnet while driving.
If you own a new car, you don't have to use a Main Dealer to maintain warranty conditions since JD Motors use genuine parts fitted by
fully qualified mechanics. You will get the same service available from the franchised dealer but at a lower price.
Do not become complacent when it comes to addressing faults with your car; a timely repair or service will ensure you will arrive safely
at your destination. Putting these tasks off until another day can have disastrous results or huge financial implications. JD Motors
will come to your rescue if you breakdown, but at the very least you will be kicking your heels in our waiting room for quite a while as
emergency repairs are carried out or waiting for alternative transport to continue on with your journey.
Use our online booking facility to either book your car in for attention
or simply to enquire what a service for your car will cost. You will be dealing with Alton's largest independent garage and vehicle recover
specialist that is dedicated in providing a 1st class caring and professional service.
Updated: 3rd June 2008
Record numbers of uninsured vehicles are being seized and crushed thanks to
automatic number plate recognition [ANPR] technology. The use of ANPR has led to
more than 100,000 uninsured vehicles in the UK being seized this year by the police
in roadside checks, compared to 78,000 during 2006. Out of the vehicles seized this year some 45,000 have
been crushed, according to figures from the Association of British Insurers [ABI].
Nick Starling, director of General Insurance and Health at the ABI, said uninsured
drivers are a menace, often drive unroadworthy vehicles and the cost of compensating
their victims adds an extra £30 per year to premiums paid by law-abiding motorists.
A key factor in removing uninsured drivers from the roads is the Motor Insurance Database, which contains details of 35m insured vehicles in
the UK and is accessed by the police every second of every day and night. All UK insurers submit vehicle and policy details to the
database and motorists can check that their vehicle is listed by going to
www.askmid.com
As contractors to the Police, JD Motors stores every increasing numbers of seized vehicles in their
secure compound at Alton while their fate is decided. Many of these vehicles will ultimately be
collected by a transporter for delivery to the crushing plant.
Recently JD Motors gave up a whole day driving a vehicle recovery truck around Hampshire to assist the police with a
media staged event on the penalties for driving without a valid licence or insurance. On board were a section 165 seized
vehicle and another that had been crushed. The publicity of the event on TV and in local newspapers resulted in a surge of visitors
to this web site and hopefully a lot of new business for insurance companies! Click on the number plate above for
pictures
of this event.
Added: 26th May 2008
Our general email address is
reception@jd-motors.co.uk but unfortunately it attracts an awful lot of unsolicited emails [Spam].
We use 'Box Trapper' to protect our inbox from spam by forcing all people not on our white list to reply to a verification email
before they can send emails to JD Motors.
We are sorry if you ever get caught up in this process but once your email address is registered with JD Motors, by responding to the
verification email, your emails will be delivered directly into our inbox without further hindrance. If the system fails to work for you, we can manually
enter your details onto the white list.
Added: 23rd May 2008
A significant milestone has been reached in Alton with JD Motors being approved to carry out MOT tests. This follows months of
hard work which included enlarging the entrance into the unit, mountains of paperwork to complete,
legal hurdles to jump and the attendance of operatives at a training facility run by the Vehicle Inspectorate.
JD Motors Vehicle Testing Station will accept Goods Vehicles [over 3,000kg up to 3,500kg DGW], Light Commercial Vehicles,
Cars, Motor Caravans, Ambulances and Taxis whether they have diesel or petrol engines.
Test Fees are shown on the Directgov web site.
Added: 29th April 2008
We show here a recovery of a vehicle from the A3 that had been struck by a passing coach while parked as far off the
carriage way as possible following a breakdown. Fortunately the driver had heeded advice to wait well away from the
vehicle for help to arrive and therefore escaped serious injury.
It illustrates that it is no longer sensible for a motorist to attempt even the simplest of repairs on major roads and
to always call a breakdown company who will normally arrive on the scene of an incident within 30 minutes. Regular servicing
of a car will generally mean arriving at your destination without an unexpected stop.
Added: 14th April 2008
At the beginning of April snow covers the compound area at JD Motors in Alton and our 4*4 is needed many times that day to give a helping tow to
stranded motorists across the region while our accident unit is kept very busy for the more serious accidents that occurred that day.
The snow and icy conditions were not to last and by the following day more traditional April weather conditions prevailed. However by then our under
cover storage areas housed quite a collection of accident damage cars.
Click on the adjacent picture to see more wintry scenes.
Added: 10th March 2008
Six months after moving into Rowan Park and converting empty industrial units into car servicing bays, our new facilities have
been opened staffed by experienced mechanics drawn from our Rushmoor garage.
If you would like to book your vehicle into these brand new facilities either:
and we'll book you in to suit your busy schedule.
Please see our Car Servicing page for more information.
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