Fuel Prices in Your Area
Fuel is a major expense while travelling, but one way of keeping costs down is to find the best fuel price in your area. There are several websites (some of which have companion mobile apps) that you can use to search for the best local fuel prices:
Fuel Map (Smartphone app)
NRMA (available through their Members’ app)
Reacting to Emergency Vehicles
It is an unfortunate fact of life that accidents happen on the roads, and you will inevitably need to deal with emergency vehicles while you are travelling. If an emergency vehicle is approaching and is sounding its alarm or has lights flashing, you must move to the left and out of the path of the vehicle as soon as it is safe to do so.
If you come across an emergency vehicle that is travelling under lights and sirens:
- Don’t panic
- Slow down (but don’t brake rapidly)
- Use your indicator
- Be aware of where other motorists are around you
- Don’t move suddenly or into the path of the emergency services vehicle
- Move as far as you can to the left of the road and come to a stop
If you can’t safely move out of the path of the emergency vehicle, keep moving forward until it is safe to move over. And remember that you are required to always abide by the road rules.
Preparing for Bush Fire Season
With bush fire season just around the corner, it’s important to be prepared now.
The NSW Rural Fire Service has set up a great website around their message of “Prepare. Act. Survive”. The website provides the tools and resources you need to prepare for a bush fire. Some of the areas covered include:
- Preparing your home and family
- Creating a Bush Fire Survival Plan
- Bush Fire Danger Ratings and Alert Levels
- How to Stay Up to Date in the event of a Bush Fire
- Creating an Emergency Survival Kit
- What to Wear During a Fire
To check out their website, just click here.
NSW Local Council Elections
As I mentioned, NSW local council elections will be held on 14 September. If you are registered in a NSW local council area, and are on the road, it is important to cast your vote and avoid any fines.
If you are registered to vote in NSW and you will be out of your electorate on polling day, then you may be eligible to vote early by either:
- Pre-poll Vote or
- Postal Vote (applications close on 9 September so get onto this if it’s how you want to vote!)
Unfortunately, there is no “absentee voting” for local council elections.
To find out if you are eligible (and how to cast an early vote), just click here.
Heavy Vehicle Insurance
One of our most popular Tips is Heavy Vehicle Insurance, and where to obtain it.
Some of the insurers that Club Members have used and recommend are:
- KT Insurance – was Ken Tame Insurance Brokers (Phone: 1300 261 261. Website: https://ktinsurance.com.au/)
- Regional Insurance Brokers (Phone: 1300 500 441. Website: http://www.regional.com.au)
- RACQ (Phone: 13 19 05. Website: http://www.racq.com.au)…also check with your state’s motoring association!
- Shannons (Phone: 13 46 46. Website: http://www.shannons.com.au)
- DGA Insurance Brokers. (Phone: 03 8636 9000. Website: http://www.dgainsurance.com.au/4wd/)
If you have a heavy vehicle and are having problems finding reasonable quotes for insurance, check these ones out to see if they suit your needs.
Essential Energy – Staying Safe on the Road
With school holidays coming up, we received information from Essential Energy on how to stay safe on the road while it’s busy.. particularly what to do if you come across an incident involving power lines:
“The July school holiday period brings an increase to the number of cars on the roads and can result in a higher number of incidents. Would you know what to do if your vehicle or machinery came into contact with the electricity network. STAY CALL WAIT.
• Stay in the machinery/vehicle
• Call 000
• Wait for the all clear.
Never go to the aid of someone who has collided with the network as you might put yourself in danger – stay at least 8 metres away from the vehicle. Familiarise yourself with the emergency escape procedure in the video below.”
For more information, watch their video by clicking here.
Volunteering
We are often asked about how Club Members can volunteer, particularly in times of natural disasters. There are many volunteering opportunities around the country, and in particular, BlazeAid helps out rural and remote farmers.
To find out about specific camps and opportunities to help out, you can go to their Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/Blazeaid) or their website (http://www.blazeaid.com.au).
For other general volunteering opportunities around the country, visit:
- Volunteering (Queensland) – http://www.emergencyvolunteering.com.au/home
- Australian Emergency Support Volunteering Register (WA) – http://emergency.volunteer.org.au
- NSW Volunteering – http://www.volunteering.nsw.gov.au
- Volunteering Queensland – http://www.volunteeringqld.org.au
- Volunteering Victoria – http://www.volunteeringvictoria.org.au
- Volunteering SA and NT – https://vsant.org.au/
- Volunteering WA – http://www.volunteeringwa.org.au
These websites provide a wealth of information and outline the several types of volunteering within the community, tips on getting started and resources.