Say goodbye to tickets
It’s never fun to park in the city – particularly when you wind up with a parking violation! Take New York City, where millions of dollars in parking violations are issued every year ($546 million in 2014 alone) – many of which are unjustified. In response, WinIt has developed a free iPhone app designed to dispute parking tickets in the NYC vicinity. iPhone users can use the app to take a photo of their parking ticket, and WinIt provides a team of seasoned parking ticket experts to contest the ticket in court. If the experts need additional information or evidence, they will get in contact with the user. There are no upfront user fees or fees to submit the ticket. If WinIt disputes the parking ticket and wins, the user pays 50 percent of the original fine amount for this service. If the user is found guilty of the parking ticket violation, he or she will have 30 days to either pay the fine directly or settle the bill through WinIt.
Less is more
Think compact utility vehicles. According to TrueCar Inc., a negotiation-free car buying and selling mobile marketplace, demand for compact utility vehicles will continue to grow among U.S. auto buyers in 2015. In fact, it predicts that, for the first time, compact utility vehicles will account for the market’s greatest segment. In the first quarter of 2015 alone, market share for compact utilities, led by Honda’s top-selling CR-V, the Ford Escape, Chevrolet Equinox and Toyota’s RAV4, reportedly grew to 15.6 percent, overtaking both compact and midsize cars. As fuel prices have declined and more segment capacity has been added, TrueCar has found that compact utilities are the only segment to have experienced double-digit discount growth (as a percent off MSRP) in the past 12 months on a year-over-year basis. There is also a relationship between incentives and gasoline prices. When gasoline experiences a notable price drop, compact utility incentives rise.
Online insurance quotes
Equifax has teamed with Digital Matrix Systems, Inc. to introduce a credit score alternative for the auto insurance industry. The risk-evaluation tool is designed to help insurers reduce risk exposure and acquisition costs, and simplify the customer quote process. Compare.com, an auto insurance comparison site, is expected to be the first company to leverage the solution, particularly as more consumers shop online comparison sites for quotes. The goal is to help insurers, who require more transparency into the financial behavior and history of prospective clients during the underwriting process, and consumers, who are looking for more accurate rate quotes.
Higher price tag
New cars are expensive – and they could become even more so in the next year. According to a recent Kelley Blue Book report, the estimated average transaction price for light vehicles in the United States was $33,560 in April 2015, up 2.6 percent from April 2014.
| Manufacturer | April 2015 Transaction Price (Avg.)* | April 2014 Transaction Price (Avg.)* |
| American Honda (Acura, Honda) | $27,564 | $27,048 |
| Fiat Chrysler (Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Dodge, Fiat, Jeep, RAM) | $33,901 | $32,829 |
| Ford Motor Company (Ford, Lincoln) | $35,406 | $34,290 |
| General Motors (Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC) | $38,632 | $37,558 |
| Hyundai-Kia | $24,980 | $23,870 |
| Nissan North America (Nissan, Infiniti) | $27,767 | $27,127 |
| Toyota Motor Company (Lexus, Scion, Toyota) | $30,463 | $30,117 |
| Volkswagen Group (Audi, Volkswagen, Porsche) | $39,203 | $39,558 |
Do as I say, not as I do
We hear it all the time: Too many teenage drivers text and make cell phone calls while driving. But, apparently the problem is much worse. A National Safety Council survey reported that 91 percent of parents who use their cell phones while driving, do so when their teens are in the car, despite 88 percent saying they are one of their teens’ primary driving teachers. On a positive note, the Council’s survey found that parents are aware of the greatest fatal crash risks facing their teens, including the risks of driving with young passengers. Fifty-seven percent of parents prohibit their teens from driving with other teens (reported to increase the risk of a fatal crash by 44 percent). Yet, these same parents do not appear to be modeling good driving behavior for their teens. The National Safety Council encourages parents with new teen drivers to use resources from DriveitHOME.org.
Safe travels
Each day, about 100 people are killed in car crashes in the United States. Ninety percent of these fatalities are associated with driver error. Even using hands-free devices can pose a risk to drivers. The National Safety Council offers several suggestions to help keep passengers and others on the road safe:
- Avoid using hands-free devices while driving.
- Avoid using a dashboard Infotainment system for such tasks as hands-free calls.
- Change your voicemail message to inform others that you may be driving and will call them back when you can safely do so.
- Set special ring tones for important incoming calls, and pull off to a safe place to take them.
- Ask a passenger to answer incoming calls. Call back when you are not driving.
More on safety
About 10 percent of fatal crashes, 18 percent of injury crashes, and 16 percent of all motor vehicle traffic crashes in 2013 were reported as distraction-affected crashes, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). AutoMD experts have followed up on these statistics with ten tips to help drivers keep their eyes on the road:
- Turn off your smartphone. This removes temptation to text or check email.
- Consider a distraction-blocker app. If you just can’t get yourself to turn the phone off, driver distraction apps are available that limit the number of people you can call or text, shut down third-party apps and block certain types of phone use above a pre-determined speed. Most major smartphone carriers offer this. In addition, there are services such as DriveSafe.ly – a free app that translates texts and email into real time audio.
- Avoid distracting apps, such as word games.
- Plan your route before you begin driving.
- Email can wait.
- Practice safe and defensive-driving techniques. You aren’t the only one who is tempted to text and drive.
- All technology can be distracting – even apps designed to help with directions. If you are a passenger, assist the driver with directions.
- In-car technology features generally are considered safer than stand-alone devices.
- Self-parking technology, lane detection warning systems and other such options are not always as safe as staying in control of your car.