Confused.Com - worriyng political leaning

[renrut]

I'm sure this will have been mentioned on here before but I was rather alarmed when confused.com started advertising the 'good driver' black box for your car. I thought that had been given up after the last company tried this (can't remember who it was).

They also do lots of articles on 'speed is bad' and on reducing rural road speed limits to 40 or 30 because people keep falling off the road. One of the reasons given for this is 'the lack of a kerb'

Anyone else noticed this? Are all the comparison companies this bad or is it just confused.com with the politcal leaning to killing off any enjoyment from driving? I'm aware they have links with Brake.

I'm boycotting confused for any insurance purpose anyway but thought I'd bring it to the attention of the pistonheads if it hasn't already been mentioned so they are aware of what their money is paying for.

[Johnnytheboy]

They also sponsor BRAKE - the fake road safety charity too.

http://www.brake.org.uk/about-us/brakes-corporate-...

There's a whole list of firms to avoid for the same reason.

[Riley Blue]

It's not necessary to exceed speed limits to enjoy driving.

[Johnnytheboy]

If you're going to reply in trite aphorisms...

It's not necessary to obey speed limits to drive safely.

[renrut]

Riley Blue said:

It's not necessary to exceed speed limits to enjoy driving.

Thats a bit of an assumption on your part. I didn't say I did speed.

[mercfunder]

renrut said:

Riley Blue said:

It's not necessary to exceed speed limits to enjoy driving.

Thats a bit of an assumption on your part. I didn't say I did speed.

Then what's your issue?
Big corporation sponsors charity, happens all the time.

[renrut]

Johnnytheboy said:

They also sponsor BRAKE - the fake road safety charity too.

http://www.brake.org.uk/about-us/brakes-corporate-...

There's a whole list of firms to avoid for the same reason.

I don't think I'd seen that particular list of Brake 'sponsors' before but its a list you could make up from those with a ulterior motives - Arriva, Network Rail, ambulance chasing solicitors and insurance companies. Oh and Siemens who make a lot of the traffic camera equipment. And eye test/correction companies who want to make eye tests compulsory. I don't see any of the motoring enthusiast groups on there.

I do agree with the requirement for regular eye tests, my dad is so short sighted in one eye its near useless but refuses to wear his glasses and as a result often has parking shunts.

[mercfunder]

renrut said:

I don't think I'd seen that particular list of Brake 'sponsors' before but its a list you could make up from those with a ulterior motives - Arriva, Network Rail, ambulance chasing solicitors and insurance companies. Oh and Siemens who make a lot of the traffic camera equipment. And eye test/correction companies who want to make eye tests compulsory. I don't see any of the motoring enthusiast groups on there.

So how about Diageo, maybe they want us all to drive around pissed up? or Keltic Clothing, maybe they think we should dress like welshmen.

[Nick M]

They also had some bks about "Fed up with congestion ? Road charging is the answer" in one of their weekly email spam things.

Was going to unsubscribe from their service and never use them again purely for that, but knowing they sponsor Brake means I'm going to avoid them far more actively in future.

[Captain Muppet]

mercfunder said:

renrut said:

Riley Blue said:

It's not necessary to exceed speed limits to enjoy driving.

Thats a bit of an assumption on your part. I didn't say I did speed.

Then what's your issue?
Big corporation sponsors charity, happens all the time.

Well he said in the OP:

renrut said:

They also do lots of articles on 'speed is bad' and on reducing rural road speed limits to 40 or 30 because people keep falling off the road. One of the reasons given for this is 'the lack of a kerb'

So maybe he finds the belming idiocy of their reasoning objectionable.

[renrut]

mercfunder said:

renrut said:

I don't think I'd seen that particular list of Brake 'sponsors' before but its a list you could make up from those with a ulterior motives - Arriva, Network Rail, ambulance chasing solicitors and insurance companies. Oh and Siemens who make a lot of the traffic camera equipment. And eye test/correction companies who want to make eye tests compulsory. I don't see any of the motoring enthusiast groups on there.

So how about Diageo, maybe they want us all to drive around pissed up? or Keltic Clothing, maybe they think we should dress like welshmen.

Perhaps, and this is just perhaps, thats because they want to be seen to be in the fight against drink drivers?

Keltic clothing supply 'corporate clothing' i.e. things like hi-vis jackets and the list on their site includes 'traffic wardens and enforcement uniforms'. Hardly a big leap is it.

[braddo]

Nick M said:

They also had some bks about "Fed up with congestion ? Road charging is the answer" in one of their weekly email spam things.

It seems like a pretty logical answer for Europe's most densely populated country, however.

[Nick M]

braddo said:

Nick M said:

They also had some bks about "Fed up with congestion ? Road charging is the answer" in one of their weekly email spam things.

It seems like a pretty logical answer for Europe's most densely populated country, however.

Except, and forgive my cynicism, but it won't work - the number of cars won't magically reduce and hence congestion will just end up being moved somewhere else. Either that or we end up paying more to use the same roads (which are still likely to be congested in peak hours) because that's the least worst option.

It's like when the changed the payment at the Dartford Crossing from a toll to a 'Congestion Charge' - it's still pretty damn busy every day and the congestion charge has done bugger all to change that...

[braddo]

True, charging just might stop congestion from getting worse. I think the proceeds of charging have to be seen to be going into road maintenance and public transport improvements for public/moral acceptance as well.

[rocketdogbert]

I expect some clever techies will find a way to spoof the data on a black box.

It's telemetry from your car plus GPS, which should be simple enough, if the Iranians can do it to a US drone, it can deffo be done. Build in economies of scale and we'll all be paying more reasonable insurance

John

[Twincam16]

braddo said:

Nick M said:

They also had some bks about "Fed up with congestion ? Road charging is the answer" in one of their weekly email spam things.

It seems like a pretty logical answer for Europe's most densely populated country, however.

If that's the case, maybe they should do something about Europe's most expensive rail network first!

[Johnnytheboy]

Twincam16 said:

braddo said:

Nick M said:

They also had some bks about "Fed up with congestion ? Road charging is the answer" in one of their weekly email spam things.

It seems like a pretty logical answer for Europe's most densely populated country, however.

If that's the case, maybe they should do something about Europe's most expensive rail network first!

Reminds me about what used to be called Transport 2000. Now call themselves the "Campaign for Better Transport".

You can be fairly safe in assuming they'll never campaign for better road transport.

[otolith]

Johnnytheboy said:

Reminds me about what used to be called Transport 2000. Now call themselves the "Campaign for Better Transport".

It would be more honest if they called themselves "Lobbyists for the self-interest of the public transport industry and transport unions".

[otolith]

Riley Blue said:

It's not necessary to exceed speed limits to enjoy driving.

That depends how unrealistically low the limit is made.

[richb77]

Confused concerns me more for their adverts.

The animator(s) are pervs as all the womens norks just bounce around all the time!