From the Rolls-Royce experimental archive: a quarter of a million communications from Rolls-Royce, 1906 to 1960's. Documents from the Sir Henry Royce Memorial Foundation (SHRMF).
Correspondence page from a motoring magazine with reader letters on various topics including insurance, hotels, and road surfaces.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 160\4\ scan0050 | |
| Date | 21th March 1939 | |
| The Motor 282 March 21, 1939. Contd. CORRESPONDENCE Insurance Problems The “Full Comprehensive” Policy THE meaning of the words “full comprehensive,” as applied to motor insurance, is being steadily whittled away. A policy is not truly comprehensive if it is restricted in any way by limitations such as owner only driving, named driver only driving, or the exclusion of driving to and from the policy holder's residence and permanent business address, and legal liability to passengers. The acceptance of a policy containing such restrictions, unless they are fully understood, may result in the holder finding himself uninsured in an emergency, through placing too much reliance on the description “comprehensive.” When offered remarkably low premiums for a “full comprehensive” policy, the inexperienced motorist should ask for an explicit statement of the cover provided, and satisfy himself that the premiums have not been “slimmed” by the sacrifice of valuable cover for which he is well prepared to pay. F. {Mr Friese} W. WRIGHT. Didsbury, Manchester. A Menace to Our Liberty YOUR correspondent “J.O.W.,” who was refused an insurance policy at the age of 65 (The Motor, March 14), has raised a matter which will become acute in the near future. Action should be taken now to prevent any company from interfering with the private activities of the general public, whether the reason be advancing age or the misfortune of an accident. The insurance companies, by refusing to accept that which in their opinion is a “bad risk,” may soon create an intolerable position if not restrained. The State, having made insurance compulsory, should be prepared to carry the risk on a national basis, similar to the health insurance, which, I believe, would give a more efficient service at a lower cost. The power to prevent anyone from driving a car, or to penalize by charging a higher premium, must be taken from insurance companies; it is a menace to the liberty of the subject and must be challenged and fought. If an age limit is necessary, Parliament should decide, so that it could be applied to all. L. JEFFORD. Bickley, Kent. Hotels Under Fire Superb and Not so Superb Eating THE correspondence which breaks out from time to time on the differences between English and foreign touring, particularly as regards the matter of hotels and feeding, seems to me generally to omit one fact of dominant interest. This is that there is abroad a uniform standard of merit which results in one being able to obtain a satisfactory meal and beverages practically anywhere one cares to stop and pass through the front door. Such differences as exist between the cheaper and more expensive establishments are more related to the variety of food and drink offered than to its quality or preparation. In England quite the opposite state of affairs exists. Superb eating can be had, often in the most unexpected places, but the kitchens which rise above a low standard are certainly few, and are mostly far between. I had a good illustration of this recently on a journey to East Anglia. I stopped at a much-advertised inn and had the most ill-served meal of my recollection. No dish was even served at the right temperature except the cheese and biscuits, and the attention and waiting can be gauged from the fact that a mass of cutlery and two dirty glasses used by the previous occupants of the table were left on it until the meal was halfway through and then only removed when attention was somewhat forcibly drawn to their presence. Yet, within a few miles, there is an entirely excellent establishment. c26 At another hotel, quite the best known in the particular town, I found that at 8.50 p.m. no hot food was available. I was advised to go to another place where a grillroom was open and an excellent meal obtained. It does seem imperative that we should have some guide so that our week-ends may not be marred by the terrors of anticipation and the agonies of remorse. FRANKFURTER. London, W.4. Service for the R.A.C. Rally Competitors WITH the near approach of the Brighton Rally, the R.A.C. should give a little careful thought to the question of the service offered by hotels on the route. The R.A.C., in selecting hotels for their controls, offer a useful slice of business in a quiet period, and should be in a position to dictate as to the service to competitors. It is a simple matter for the hotels to organize their arrangements, as they know, pretty accurately, how many people to expect and when to expect them. Yet many of them, instead of taking the opportunity of building goodwill for some future occasion, look on the affair as a chance to victimize customers who cannot go elsewhere. Past experiences of hotels on the route include items as (1) a pot of tea for three, at 6d. plus 3d. cake, 4d. extra. (2) Filling a small Thermos flask with black coffee, at 11 p.m., 7s. 6d. (3) A simple breakfast for three, at 8.30 a.m., 12s. By way of contrast, the L.M.S. Hotel at York, last year, offered excellent food and service at 4 a.m. at ordinary grill-room price. Most of the overcharge occurs in hotels which, but for the competitors, would be so deserted that you could fire a shotgun and not hit anybody, and the R.A.C. would be doing an excellent service if they insisted on a menu, with prices, before fixing their controls. Curiously enough, the trouble does not arise with garages, which seem to treat competitors with sympathy and welcome the extra business offered. B. N. WILMOT, M.I.M.T. Bognor Regis. Skidding Surfaces Wood Bad for Two-wheelers I MOST heartily endorse all the unpleasant remarks made about wood-paving by many of your correspondents, but if that peculiarly diabolical kind of road surface is a nightmare to the drivers of motorcars, you can imagine what it is like for the riders of two-wheelers. Even at slowest speeds one's front wheel may skate and cause a lie down without warning, and, if another vehicle is following and is unable to obtain tyre adhesion for braking, the results are obvious. C.H.M.D. Westgate. Rubber Paving THE Cornmarket Street, Oxford, has rubber paving. During the winter I observed a bus pull up at the kerb on a snowy day, when the surface was covered with slush. It showed no signs of skidding. The driver said that on this paving he had never once experienced even the slightest skid. Nor does the rubber paving appear to wear smooth after a time. This is proved by the experimental stretch laid many years ago in New Bridge Street, London, E.C. MOTORIST SINCE 1913. Oxford. Parking Lamps NO reference is made in the paragraph on parking lights to the illumination of the rear number plate (The Motor, March 7). I find that the Act demands that one must have two obligatory lamps to the front and a red light to the rear. What is the position with regard to the number plate? V.M. Leamington Spa. [When lights are required the number plate must also be illuminated.—ED. {J. L. Edwards} ] | ||