UK’s Largest Driving School Insurance Broker Driving school insurance broker Waveney Group Schemes Ltd (part of the Waveney Insurance Brokers Group of Companies) has recently announced that they have now provided insurance for over 25,000 of the UK’s driving instructors since their scheme was launched in August 2003. From humble beginnings providing insurance for just 4 vehicles, Waveney has expanded its driving school insurance operation each year and quickly established itself as the UK’s number one driving school insurance broker. Asked about the success of the business, David Malone, Waveney’s director said “It’s all about understanding what cover driving instructors want their insurance companies to provide, pricing it competitively and providing an excellent claims service with full vehicle replacement if the instructor has a claim”. David went on to say “We’ve had real success with claims as we use the services of Motorist Services Ltd who guarantee to get a replacement vehicle to an instructor on the same day as the claim occurs, or at the very latest the following day (Monday to Friday), and this has got many driving instructors out of awkward situations particularly if they have pupils booked for test”. David was particularly proud of Waveney’s renewal retention and commented that “Waveney retained exactly 99% of its renewals during 2008 and its objective is to ensure that this continues at or around this level as the business continues to grow”. Instructor ServicesWaveney Group Schemes Ltd provides a wide range of insurance services to ADI & PDI instructors and driving schools through its web site www.driving-school-insurance.com

as well as offering access to a complimentary range of additional instructor benefits through their InstructorClub site www.instructorclub.co.uk

I recently discovered a money saving opportunity that I’m sure most self-employed people and companies are completely unaware of that offers discounts of up to 6% on fuel. The offer even provides multi networks and multiple cards which are all shown on one invoice and this has helped us enormously with our VAT accounting.  

Like other companies we were using fuel cards provided by Shell which allowed our drivers to fill up their vehicles at Shell stations but did not provide a discount off the fuel they used. Now we’ve got a range of cards (each one chosen by the driver which suits his/her needs) and we’re getting a nice discount off our fuel spend.

Anthony Hobbs, E-Business executive at The Fuelcard Company UK Ltd, says: “The two major benefits are that admin is much easier and there can be savings on the fuel. There are no real cons, so it is a no-brainer for most companies who are buying fuel. We have the widest range of cards in one place so we can offer you the right card for your business rather than the one which makes us the most money.”

Do fuel cards enable better planning?

“There is a view that unless you have a fleet of trucks a fuel card will not be applicable to you, but we are trying to make sure that more people realise the benefits. They are by far the best way to keep tabs on fuel that is being used. In terms of invoicing everything is broken down by transaction – by card or by driver name. There is no need to spend time inputting receipts and the data can be sent in an Excel spreadsheet, including where they filled up, what time of day it was, what price they paid etc. These results can be run on a monthly basis and compared to previous months – enabling you to look at average MPGs and the amount of petrol and diesel used. This information can then be used to accurately predict how much you are going to have to pay in future, and to budget accordingly.”

Can fuel cards save money?

“They can all save you money in terms of lessening the administrative burden, for example, claiming back the VAT is made simple by compiling all transactions on a single invoice. In terms of price savings it depends on the type of card. There are two main types – ‘pump price’ and ‘fixed rate’. With pump price cards, payments are made at the price on the sign at the forecourt. With fixed rate cards, payments are made at a rate set by the fuel card company – on average this is about three pence per litre cheaper on diesel.”

Which fuel card is best?

“That is probably the hardest question to answer! It is individual to each company. All different companies and sectors have different needs. They may put emphasis on having carbon offset or on having even geographical coverage. It may also depend on what size the vehicles are, for example, HGVs will need suitable access.”

Can charges be offset against taxation?

“It is all HMRC VAT approved and it is a lot tighter than any other method. For example, if you lose a receipt you will probably never be able to claim the VAT back.”

Is there a danger of improper use or runaway bills?

“Most fuel cards are now Chip and PIN enabled, which reduces fraudulent activity. Cards can also be restricted so they can only be used to buy diesel or petrol and not everything in the shop! Each card can be registered to either a specific driver or a specific vehicle registration number. Vehicle registration is more secure as the number is checked at the point of purchase.”

“In terms of runaway bills, there is weekly invoicing so there is no chance of anything building up that you do not know about. The system is much easier to monitor and it is difficult to use the cards improperly.”

What accountancy issues can a fuel card introduce?

“Everything in one place – no receipts, no having to chase people for results at the end of the month!”

How is theft handled? Is it the same as with a credit card?

“It is very similar to a credit card. You need to notify the supplier. It can take 24 hours to stop the card and we will take all liability from the time you inform us that it has been lost or stolen.”

Interested?

If like me this sounds of interest to you, log on to

http://www.discount-fuel-card.co.uk

Images of business opportunities rarely spring to mind, yet many large companies have realised that it’s not all about digging, super-poking and playing the world at poker or scrabble, and actually use these social networks and groups to the benefit of their business. The likes of Cadburys promoted their chocolate by creating, submitting and spreading their popular ‘gorilla playing drums’ advert for FREE on sites like Facebook and YouTube through the use of viral marketing. YouTube has played the advert 3.4 million times with Facebook and MySpace posting the advert millions of times.

The potential for social networking tools to connect huge numbers of people has been clearly illustrated. Facebook has over 200 million regular users and is in the top 4 used websites world wide with only Google, Yahoo and YouTube – another social networking type site  receiving more hits globally. Companies want to harness those connections themselves to market their products and services.

What is social networking and why do we need it?
Even before I started blogging, digging and nudging my friends on Facebook, MySpace, Digg, Bebo and the new Twitter format I was looking for a cheap media that I could use to get myself heard without the cost of expensive advertising campaigns on the internet and the more traditional Yellow Pages. I worked out some time ago that 97.6% of our staff are members of Facebook which made me think I wish we could have that kind of audience.

I soon found that these sites provide access to a whole generation of on line users that spend hours per day searching their social networks and blogs for new groups and networks to join.

Social networking or blogging can be considered as building up your own personal brand on the internet, and anybody who signs up to a social network is making the decision to create a personal brand or identity about themselves. When you create this on line identity you can represent yourself on the internet on any given network. When people read your profile pages these are the things that people remember when they think of you, and could be things such as your interests, who you are associated with, the topics you blog about, and your professional connections.

What is the benefit of social networking as a driving instructor? Are they just for the new PlayStation generation who like to poke, digg and comment on their friends and others’ profiles leaving most people wondering what the point to all these social networking sites is, and how these sites can provide any real benefit to our lives. Is it just a constant stream of useless information and emails telling me I have been left a comment or been sent a nudge? Or are there legitimate uses for social networking? Of course it’s not worthless. It’s not about having the most friends or sending the funniest comments – it’s about building relationships and becoming known within a niche. This niche cannot be highlighted more than as a driving instructor. You have a market of millions of young people who subscribe free to these social networking services looking for groups and networks to join.

Therefore the purpose of social networking as a driving instructor is to start twittering, blogging commenting and participating in on line conversations and activities with your existing pupils and potential new Pupils. Invite your existing pupils to join as a friend. I bet they’re already members of a social network. By allowing your pupils to communicate with you more regularly, you will inevitably build up a better rapport with them, and consider this –  I bet there is not a person under the age of 21 who is a member of a social network that does not have less than 50 other friends on the social networking profile.

This opens up a fantastic marketing opportunity for you and if you set up a group, then you will no doubt find that you’ll get recommendations and members join your new found community of which many of these will be potential learner drivers. You will also find these profiles and groups are listed in search engines making you able to be found more easily in the likes of Google and Yahoo and you won’t have to spend a penny to achieve this. However, there are several things to consider and I would use this analogy. Playing football in the park does not make you a professional footballer and the same principle is true for on line networking. By adding a few friends and occasionally twittering is not going to build your profile, however, the more often you participate in on line networking and brand building via social networking, the more professional opportunities will present themselves to you from being more well-known.

A year ago I decided to  embrace this new found  social networking technology and have been creating InstructorClub – a niche social networking site for driving instructors, driving schools and organisations connected to the driving instruction industry. It provides driving instructors with the tools needed to build their on line social network profile. Driving instructors can now have an on line presence within 5 minutes of registering and build up their own forums and networks within the club.

Take a look at what a social networking site can do for you by logging on to www.instructorclub.co.uk