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View PostTechnology has been able to offer benefits in several sectors, and the insurance sectors are no different. Younger drivers are often met with excessive insurance premiums because of the information made available about drivers within a specific age range.
However, the use of telematics has ensured that younger drivers are given an advantage when it comes to showing showcasing how careful they are on the road.
The information is acquired by the attachment of a black box to the vehicle, but some may be worried about this due to some of the myths associated with black box insurance.
Online protection is a hot topic nowadays, so it’s understandable why some are concerned with how their data is used.
However, data acquired by insurance companies is also used for the calculation of premiums, and legally can’t be provided to a third party without the driver’s consent.
Another myth associated with black box insurance is that drivers can’t drive at night. There are no curfews associated with black box car insurance, but drivers do need to be mindful that travelling at night carries more risk than travelling in the day, so premiums could be slightly higher as a result.
Many people are worried that if they go over the speed limit then their information is sent to the police. However, instances of speeding will only be used for calculating insurance premiums, which will be more expensive if instances of speeding are constantly recorded.
Given how advanced the technology found in a vehicle these days, it’s understandable that some don’t want to add a device that could interfere with the inner working of the vehicle, but this isn’t the case.
The use of a black box simply uses electricity, like stereos and car alarms, and certainly don’t omit frequencies that can interfere with other devices in the vehicle such as Bluetooth.
Those new to the concept of black box car insurance may be concerned that that one mistake can lead to higher insurance premiums, but this is very rarely the case.
Insurance companies that make use of black boxes will be reviewing your driving habits over time, so while repeatedly driving at high speeds and braking urgently on a regular basis will affect insurance claims, a mistake made is unlikely to have a detrimental effect on the premium being paid.
When compared to other forms of car insurance, the use of black box car insurance can be overwhelming at times, but it’s important to remember that insurance companies aren’t spying on customers or using their data for nefarious purposes, but rather collecting data to ensure that fairer premiums are offered to young drivers.
Irish number plates might seem pretty self-explanatory they’re the number plates found on vehicles manufactured/ sold in Ireland right? Well yes, they are but things are a little more confusing than you might first think. Irish number plates and different for those found in Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK.
So, before we look at the Irish number plates in more detail it’s important that you know how Northern Ireland’s and the rest of the UK’s plates work. In the UK non-personalised number plates follow the same pattern.
They are laid out in the following order with two-letters which act as the location code, then the age identifier which is usually shown as two numbers and then there will be a combination of three letters or numbers to finish the plate.
In Northern Ireland the layout is similar but there are some differences to know about. When it comes to newer number plates in Northern Ireland they will always use select letters for the location code. These will typically begin with the letter I but they can also feature letters A – W as long as the second letter is I.
However, apart from this, the layout is the same as the number plates found in the rest of the UK. So, Northern Irish plates are for all intents and purposes quite similar but what about the republic of Ireland? When you’re looking at these Irish plates things are quite different.
Number Plates In The Republic of Ireland
Number plates in the Republic of Ireland may at first seem more complicated than those found in the UK and Northern Ireland but just like those alternatives, the plates are divided into three sections. They follow this basic layout YYY–CC–SSSSSS.
So, yes they are typically going to be longer than the plates found in the rest of the UK. To help you get a better understanding of each section and what they will usually look like read on below. Once you know how they are put together Irish number plates are easy to understand.
The Y Section
This section will always be numbers so it is the reverse of the layout found in the UK. Three digits are used in two groups one section covers January to June while another covers July to December. This new practice began in 2013 using 131 for the first 6 months and 132 for the latter half of the year.
The pattern has continued for the following years with 133, 134 and so on. Vehicles registered before 2013 use the older YY system for this section of the plates. Which is similar to the age identifier used in the UK. In this system, only two numbers were used to signal the registration of the vehicle.
For 2005 this would have been 05, for 2006 it would be 06 but this was changed to the three-digit YYY system in 2013. You may have already noticed that the YYY digits are based on the date the vehicle is first registered. So, it may differ from the actual year that the vehicle was manufactured, model numbers and the date of registration won’t always be the same after all.
The C Section
The second section of an Irish number plate is the two-character location identifier. This follows a similar system to the plates in Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK. While the location identifier will usually be two letters some locations in Ireland will only have one letter. Galway county and Dublin, for example, use the single-letters G and D.
The S Section
Finally, we have the S section this might at first seem quite random and erratic but this section does actually have a pattern to it. The S section will always be numbers on standard Irish plates and it can range from a single-digit to six numbers long.
The S section is based on the number of cars manufactured in a certain period in each location. For example, the first car registered in Dublin would be D 1, the second D 2 and so on. This number is usually reset back to 1 after each year but this might not always be the case.
So, that completes our look at Irish number plates. You can likely see now how they differ from the number plates found in the rest of the UK. To sum up the main points one last time the first section is based on when the vehicle was registered.
The second section is the location identifier which is based on where you live and the final section is based on the number of cars registered in your location during that specific time period. It’s also important to remember that Irish number plates are fixed which means they can’t be transferred to other vehicles. You can change your plates however you must first get your existing ones de-registered.
Christmas is such an amazing and magical part of childhood. I always remember getting so excited about taking my stocking up to bed with my milk and mince pie for Santa and Carrot for the reindeer on Christmas eve, knowing that when I woke up it would be filled with goodies.
Myself, my brothers and my sisters were always allowed to open our stockings before we woke up our parents and whoever woke up first would go wake the rest of us up and we would all sit on our beds to see what we had got. There would always be a Satsuma and a handful of loose quality streets at the bottom of our stockings which now all five of us have carried on the same tradition with our own children.
I have been so excited this year because I have collaborated with one of our favourite brands ‘Smiggle’ to see what goodies I can find online for the girls stocking fillers and this is what I have picked.
Lydia and Emily are going to love each and every item I have picked for them. They have been asking for walkie talkies for a long time and Emily has been wanting one of these snazzy swiss army pencil cases just like Lydia’s.
They both love drawing and colouring, so I have picked a selection of different scented gel pels, a pack of felt pens and a pack of glitter pencils for each of them.
I also picked up a new lunch box for Emily to match her new pencil case because we all know how much kids love matching accessories and I just know that she will love it.
I chose the Bluetooth wireless speaker for the girls to share as they both love playing music through their tablet but also moan as it’s never loud enough so they will be very happy with this one.
Lastly, these are my overall favourite. How could I not get them matching Unicorn ear muffs? Look at that gold unicorn horn and you can clearly see just how fluffy the headband is, they are perfect for this cold chilly weather. No more cold ears and earaches.
Check out Smiggle’s website by clicking here. Their sale is also very impressive so be sure to keep checking back.
You must all know by now that we love sitting around the table and playing family games together. My kids, and I am certain all kids their age, love any games that involve poo and farts, so this was perfect for us and I am so excited to tell you all about it.
The game is very simple, get from the mouth to the poop with the pen and you have four animals to choose from. The trick, however, is that you have to do it ‘BLINDFOLDED’ and trust me when I say it’s not as easy as it looks (or not in this case). Doodle Doo’s age suitability is from 6 years+, however, my five-year-old daughter Milly LOVES playing this game with us and has no issues following the instructions. Each of the four different animals offer a different ability maze board, ranging from easy for the kiddies to hard for all the competitive adults out there.
Each player has a dry-wipe pen each and on their turn, they cover their eyes with the mask (parents might have to hold it on so that they cant cheat) and make their way through the maze. If they go over the edge another player will push the ‘Fart’ cushion to alert them that their turn is over and then its the next players turn. The play continues until one of you reaches the poo.
This game is a heck of a lot of fun! We were all trying different tricks to try and get through the maze – even air practising, which did nothing to help – and beat the others. Waiting with the fart cushion, the kids were only too happy to push it really hard, and often in our ears, when we hit the wall. The easy board will comfortably take over fifteen minutes to play and the harder boards will take much longer, so you get lots of play from a single board.
The kids, as am I, are happy to play this game again and again. A simple yet very challenging game for all and one I definitely recommend.
Doodle Doo is available to buy here and is again like my other games is worth every penny. We love this game and play it pretty much every single day.
Disclosure: We received the sample for the purposes of writing this review, however, all thoughts and opinions are our own.
