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Answers
What is car sharing?
Car sharing is when there is more than one
occupant in a private car. We all share cars regularly, with our
friends and family, without thinking about it. But there are often
times when a driver has empty seats in the car because they don't
know of anyone who needs a lift.
And that's where organised car-sharing, using
the best of today's technology, comes in.
The liftshare matching service puts
people travelling in the same direction or a similar destination
in contact with each other, allowing them to arrange to travel
together and share the costs, whilst also reducing congestion
and pollution on our roads.
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What
are the benefits of sharing a car?
The UK has the worst congestion, longest
commuting time, second highest road utilisation and highest car
ownership in the EU.
The UK's traffic situation has led to significant
social, economic and environmental costs:
- Traffic jams cost the economy £5 billion
every year in lost productivity
- There are 10 million empty seats on the
road every day
- The average speed of traffic in London
is 10 mph
- 29% of children travel to school by car
- 90% of London air pollution is caused
by road traffic
Sharing a car:
- Reduces the costs of travelling by car
- Undercuts the cost of nearly all other
forms of transport
- Reduces congestion and pollution
- Reduces parking problems
- Reduces the need for a private car
- Widens the recruitment catchment areas
for businesses
- Provides a real solution to the lack of
public transport in rural areas
- Facilitates the integration of public
and private transport
- Is a way of meeting new, like-minded people.
If half of UK motorists received
a lift one day a week, congestion and pollution would be reduced
by 10% and traffic jams by 20%.
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What are the costs
of car sharing?
liftshare suggests that passengers
pay the driver 10p per mile each. Alternatively drivers and passengers
can split the costs of running the vehicle equally. Please note
that drivers should not
make a profit from car-sharing as this can invalidate their insurance.
As a basic figure we advise that drivers receive no more than
40p per mile from passengers, but you may want to look up your
own motoring costs as calculated by the AA.
If you have any concerns please contact your insurance company
directly.
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How can I get involved?
The service is available to anyone who travels
in the UK - students, commuters, people on the school run, football
supporters, festival goers, tourists, employees - anyone!
And joining the scheme is simple and completely
FREE. All you have to do is register
your details (for security reasons) and we will send you your
password via e-mail.
If you would like to change your password to one you will remember more easily, please click on Personal, delete the asterisks in the password boxes and replace them with your own password.
Please keep a note of your password, as you
will need it for future entry to the site. If, however, you happen
to forget it you can click on Send
me my password. Your password will be sent to your e-mail
address immediately.
Once you've registered your journey and submitted
the information we'll search the database for possible matches
and give you the details of other people going your way.
You can contact any suitable travelling companions
via their e-mail (this ensures members' privacy) and arrange to
meet them at a collection point that suits you both. Make sure
you both bring I.D. so you both know you're meeting the right
person.
Another way of getting involved is to set
up a car-sharing Group,
or you can get us to develop one of our Branded
Car-sharing Schemes for your company, village, town, service
etc.
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When can I share a
car?
Because of the organisation involved, car
sharing is most appropriate for pre-planned or regular journeys,
including:
- Getting to and from work
- Doing the weekly shop
- Getting the children to school
- Going to the match at the weekend
- Travelling to a festival, big event or
show
- Getting to and from university or simply
visiting friends
But you can also search for travelling companions
for one-off journeys to anywhere in the country.
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What are the
chances of finding a perfect match to my requirements?
Thousands of people have had success in finding
travelling companions using liftshare, and our software
has been designed to identify all possible ways of getting you
from a to b.
If, however, you're having difficulty in
finding a match, we suggest that you look for a travelling companion
for part of your journey, and do the rest on public transport.
And remember - the more members we have,
the greater the chance of finding an exact match. So make sure
you tell your friends about liftshare, and get them to
register their journeys a.s.a.p.
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Will my e-mail address
be visible to other users?
No, your e-mail address is kept hidden at
all times. The only information that is visible to other users
is your 'usually called' name, your smoking preference, and the
journey details you added.
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Do I have to pay
to search for drivers or passengers?
It is completely free to search for travelling
companions. However we suggest that drivers and passengers split
the cost of each journey, or passengers can pay 10p per mile.
Drivers must not use car-sharing as a means of making a profit.
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What are the insurance
implications of liftsharing?
The Association of British Insurers clearly
states that car-sharing won't affect the insurance of their members
so long as a profit isn't made:
"Giving Lifts - All ABI motor insurers have
agreed that if your passengers contribute towards your running
costs your insurance cover will not be affected, as long as lifts
are given in a vehicle seating eight passengers or less. This
agreement does not apply if you make a profit from payments received
or if carrying passengers is your business." (Source: ABI website,
2005)
The ABI represents around 400 companies,
transacting 94% of the business of UK insurance companies.
Drivers with any concerns should check with
their insurance company as terms and conditions may vary between
insurance providers over time.
If you would like to contact your insurance
company, please feel free to use our Draft
Letter.
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What is my password
and can I change it?
We will e-mail you your password as soon
as you have registered.
If you would like to change your password
to one you will remember more easily, please click on Personal,
delete the asterisks in the password boxes and replace them with
your own password.
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What other services
are available?
The carsharenorfolk.com site has comprehensive
Route Planners,
information on Buses,
Trains, and much,
much more to help you plan your journey efficiently.
Our software also lets you set up your very
own car sharing Groups
free of charge, so that you can establish an exclusive closed
group for you and your friends, or a new open group for people
with particular interests.
We also provide Branded
Car Sharing Schemes for groups, companies or communities who
want to provide a cheap and easy way for people to travel. Other
services include Consulting Services, Travel
Surveys, Transport
Website design and help in Promoting
Your Scheme.
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What is a lift sharing
group?
We have a huge number of public groups that
you can join at no extra cost, enabling you to find travelling
companions with similar interests or destinations to you. Click
here to see a complete
list of public groups.
You can also establish your own Private
Group to which access would be restricted.
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How can I set up
a lift sharing group?
Setting up a group is easy! All you need
to do is decide whether you want to set up a Private
Group, where membership is restricted, or a Public
Group, where anyone can join. For example, you might want
to set up a closed group for you and your colleagues. Or you could
set up an open group for anyone interested in classical music.
For more information just click on Groups and follow the instructions!
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How do I contact the
driver/passenger?
Having selected a suitable travelling match,
you should make contact (to agree a time and place to meet) using
their e-mail address. We do not recommend that you exchange home
addresses (for security reasons), and we advise all members to
meet in public locations such as a train station or bus station,
which are easy to get to and away from, should the lift fail.
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What happens if my
liftshare fails?
liftshare is solely a travel information
service provider and we cannot be held responsible for any journeys
that don't work out as planned. Likewise the drivers and passengers
who register their journeys with us are under no legal obligation
to their travelling companions or to liftshare to make
any journeys.
However we hope that if plans change and
journeys can't be made, that all affected parties will be contacted
and forewarned with appropriate notice. We also suggest that travelling
companions arrange to meet at locations close to public transport
networks, so that if plans fall through the passengers have the
option of using an alternative form of transport to get to their
destination on time.
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How safe is
car sharing?
The safety of our members is a priority for
liftshare, and we have made our web-site as secure as
we can. All members' details are stored securely in the database
and only the members' intended travel information can be accessed
on-line.
When it comes to travelling, every member
is responsible for his or her own safety. However we do recommend
that members' follow some simple security measures outlined below:
- Avoid exchanging home addresses with your
travelling companion before you meet them.
- Arrange to meet in a public place.
- Inform a friend or family member of who
you will be travelling with, when and to where.
- Make sure you show each other your I.D.s
- passports, student cards or driving licences - so you know
you're travelling with the right person.
- You are under no obligation to go ahead
with any liftshare. If you have any doubts about your
travelling companion, for any reason, you should avoid travelling
with them.
- If you have any problems please call us immediately on 08700 11 11 99 and we will endeavour to help in any way that we can.
For more information about safety and security
of personal information please read Terms
and Conditions and the Privacy
Policy
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Is it possible to find
travelling companions of the same sex? (Single sex travelling
i.e. Only females)
Yes, through our public groups you can join
all male or female car sharing schemes.
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Where should I arrange
to meet my travelling companions?
We recommend that you meet your travelling
companions at a public place, close to public transport networks
if possible so that alternative transport options are available
should the lift fall through. We advise members not to meet at
a home address for security reasons.
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How do I cancel my
membership?
To cancel your membership, please click on
the Personal
Details page and select 'Please remove my details'. All your
details will be removed from the database immediately.
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How do I edit my
e-mail address, password etc?
To edit any of your personal details such
as your default e-mail address or password, please click on Personal
Details, followed by 'Update my details'. Your can amend your
details as necessary, and the records in our database will be
updated automatically. Any new details will also be e-mailed through
to you for your records.
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What is a Branded Web-site?
liftshare can build you your own
branded car-sharing web-site, either to stand alone or as part
of your existing web-site or intranet. For more information, see
our page on Branded
Web Sites.
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What are the benefits
of Branded Web-sites and Group schemes?
- Provide a cheap transport option for staff,
clients and visitors
- Reduce traffic and congestion
- Reduce pollution
- Reduce pressure on car-parking facilities
- Help you improve relations with the local
community
- Demonstrate your commitment to the environment
- Improve your corporate image
- Widen your recruitment catchment area
- Assist in team-building and developing
community spirit
- Can form a key part of your Travel
Plan
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