Motorists have “lost respect” for learner drivers, according to an instructor. Mike Nunn, 53, teaches in Lincoln and said incidents of frustration, anger and “road rage” towards learners had become a regular occurrence, alongside a drop in driving standards.

Louis Clayton, 27, from Scampton, near Lincoln, who recently passed his driving test, said the behaviour of other motorists had given him “the jitters” while he was learning.

A spokesperson for Lincolnshire Road Safety Partnership urged motorists to “look honestly” at their driving. It recorded 329 collisions resulting in serious injuries and 34 fatal incidents in 2025.

Nunn said people driving too closely, inappropriate overtaking and frustration towards his students had become common. “It can make them take actions which wouldn’t normally be safe because they’re feeling pressured into acting,” he explained.

On one occasion, while teaching a learner, a vehicle on the opposite side of the road collided with his car while conducting a dangerous overtaking maneouvre.

“They drove off,” Nunn said. “It was a hit and run. If that doesn’t show a drop in standards, I don’t know what does.”

He suggested drivers should be retested to ensure they met standards, adding: “We need to get back to the idea that driving is a privilege, not a right.”

Clayton began lessons a decade ago, before taking a break. He passed his test on his first attempt earlier this month. He said over the course of 10 years, he noticed a shift in other drivers’ attitudes towards him.

Clayton experienced “a lot of tailgating” and on one occasion a driver behind him lost his temper and began beeping and shouting while he was practising a hill start.

“I’ve found that people got a little more impatient,” he added. “If you have a bad enough experience, it can really strike some fear into you.”

The BBC is reporting that the number of collisions resulting in serious injuries on Lincolnshire’s roads increased from 310 in 2024 to 329 last year, according to figures from the road safety partnership. The number of deaths fell from 51 to 37.

Simon Outen-Coe, from the partnership, called on drivers to “avoid distractions, be patient and concentrate”.

“We’ve got to start looking honestly at ourselves as individuals who use the roads and about the personal responsibility that we all have in how we behave,” he said. “There seems to have been over a past number of years a growing feeling that somebody is always to blame and it’s not us.”

Insp Jason Baxter from Lincolnshire Police said it was crucial people kept calm on the roads, especially after a collision.

Although road rage was not a direct offence, it could become criminal, he explained. “It could easily turn into a public offence or an assault,” Baxter added.

He encouraged people who believed they had captured incidents of dangerous driving to upload the video to the police’s Operation Snap website, external, which could result in a prosecution.

Vaping in a car with a child present could soon be banned in England, according to new Government plans. As part of a wider strategy to boost the health of the nation, the Government is seeking to introduce new rules to protect children from the impact of second-hand smoke.

A public consultation on the new restrictions is running for 12-weeks and will end on May 8 2026. It will help shape future regulations under the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, which is progressing through parliament.

The RAC is reporting that smoking in a car (or any other vehicle) has been illegal in England and Wales since October 2015. Both the driver and the smoker can be fined £50 each, even if the windows of the vehicle are open.

In Scotland, a ban on smoking in a car with a child present came into force on 5 December 2016.

Under the new proposals, people would be prevented from smoking, vaping, or using heated tobacco products in cars or at public playgrounds.

Chief Medical Officer for England, Professor Chris Whitty said: “People who do not smoke but who are exposed to second-hand smoke can suffer significant harmful effects on their health, including an increased risk of asthma, poor birth outcomes, several cancers, stroke and heart disease.

“The health risks are greatest for children, pregnant women and people with medical conditions,” he added.

The proposals would extend smoke‑free and heated‑tobacco‑free rules to outdoor areas around healthcare facilities and indoor spaces where smoking is banned.

The measures would not apply to outdoor hospitality venues such as pub gardens, private homes and private outdoor areas.

Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Wes Streeting, said: “Second-hand smoke increases the risk of heart disease and lung cancer, and we want to protect children and the sick from harm.”

Chancellor Rachel Reeves said the Fuel Finder Scheme could save the average household £40 a year.

Motoring groups have said that motorists can end up paying 20p per litre more for petrol or diesel depending on where in the country they fill their tank.

The Fuel Finder Scheme will allow “drivers to find the best deals and spur competition as fuel retailers compete for customers,” the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said.

The UK watchdog recommended the scheme after publishing a number of reports into fuel prices on UK forecourts.

The BBC news service is reporting that the most recent study found that competition remained “weak” between petrol stations and profit margins for retailers were “persistently high”.

The Petrol Retailers Association said the industry was facing higher wage and tax bills but pump prices were much cheaper than the highs of 2022 and 2023, following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine which sent oil prices soaring.

The CMA found that retail prices tended to “rise like a rocket, but fall like a feather” in response to increases or decreases in the cost of crude oil.

The shared price database policy was first put forward by the Conservatives in 2023, and announced by the Labour government in last year’s Budget.

How it works
Although the government’s Fuel Finder Scheme sources and shares pricing data – as well as forecourt services such as car washes, air pumps, and toilets – there is no specific government app to direct motorists to the cheapest forecourt or garage.

Instead, this open source data will be used by established apps and websites that already map out and compare pump prices across the UK.

The difference is that previously, sharing price data was voluntary – now all businesses that sell petrol and diesel have to upload their price changes to a government database.

Current comparison apps and websites include PetrolPrices, Waze, My RAC and the AA app, as well as in-car navigation systems and online map services.

Government guidance says drivers who spot a difference between prices advertised on comparison apps and the fuel forecourt should report the discrepancy on its Fuel Finder website.

Petrol is currently 131.91p per litre, which is the lowest price since July 2021, according to the RAC motoring group. A litre of diesel is 140.97p.

RAC head of policy, Simon Williams, said: “As a growing number of the country’s 8,300 forecourts submit their prices on a daily basis, drivers will be able to easily find the cheapest forecourts near them using their favoured app or sat-nav.”

A Freedom of Information request to 207 councils across England, Scotland and Wales representing nearly a quarter of a million (246,510) miles of local roads – showed that of the 177 that responded, Derbyshire County Council reported the sharpest rise in claims, increasing from 224 in 2021 to 3,307 (up 3,083) in 2024.** Glasgow City Council took second place, where claims more than doubled from 1,140 in 2021 to 2,794 in 2024 (up 1,654), with Oxfordshire County Council third with claims jumping from 488 in 2021 to 1,941 in 2024 (up 1,453).

While the comparison to 2021 is concerning, the number of claims has thankfully come down slightly year-on-year. The local authorities that responded to the RAC’s request for data received a total of 56,655 claims in 2023, meaning compensation requests have dropped by six per cent to 2024’s number (53,015).

Only a quarter of claims settled in the space of a year
Although the data indicates a substantial increase in claims over a three-year period, 173 councils settled only a quarter (26%) in 2024, paying 13,832 of the 53,015 submitted by drivers.*** The RAC estimates this amounts to around £3,564,824 being paid out by councils in just a single year, at an average of £390 per claim. But this is less than the £590 average repair bill drivers of family cars can expect if their vehicle suffers any damage more serious than a puncture after hitting a pothole.****

Of all the councils that paid out to drivers in 2024, Merton Borough Council paid the highest average sum per claim – £2,267 for each of the five claims it paid, leading to an estimated total of £11,335 paid to drivers in claims.***** Meanwhile it’s estimated that Derbyshire paid out the highest amount of total compensation – based on an average of £257 for each of the 2,355 claims it paid out, the council is thought to have spent around £605,235 compensating drivers for pothole-related vehicle damage in 2024.

In Scotland, the authority that paid the most per claim was Glasgow with an average of £253 paid for each of the 611 claims it paid, leading to an estimated £154,724 paid out to drivers in total. In Wales, Wrexham paid the most at £2,026 for each of its 38 claims, amounting to an estimated £76,991 in total.

Earlier this year, almost four-in-10 drivers (39%) surveyed by the RAC said they’d struggle to pay an unexpected repair bill of up to £500 – less than the cost of repairing a vehicle due to pothole damage.******

172 councils refused nine-in-10 pothole claims in 2024
Across England, Scotland and Wales, the data suggests drivers have a slim chance of making a successful claim for pothole compensation. Of the 177 councils that shared data for their 2024 pothole compensation claims, 97% (172) refused more than nine-in-10 (90%) of the claims they received.

Based on the FOI data shared with the RAC, Gloucestershire, Worcestershire, Medway and Carmarthenshire and Telford all turned down 99% of claims received in 2024, equating to 534; 146; 142, 113 and 76 requests refused.

Bridgend was the only council to pay out 100% of a much smaller number of compensation claims last year at 52 claims.

Claims per mile of road
When it comes to the number of claims per mile of road, Glasgow City received 2,794 last year – more than double the size of its 1,203-mile network.

Four local authorities – Staffordshire, Derbyshire, Edinburgh and Bury Metropolitan –received the equivalent of one pothole claim for every single mile of their road network.

Meanwhile Surrey – which topped the list for the highest number of claims per mile in 2023 – had a pothole claim for every two miles of its 3,415-mile network, at 1,513 claims in total.

RAC head of policy Simon Williams said: “The massive three-year rise in pothole compensation claims made by drivers shows what a huge task it is returning the roads to a respectable standard. But it’s far from an even picture across the country, with just a handful of councils receiving the lion’s share of claims from beleaguered motorists.

“Drivers are still suffering the consequences of years of neglect to Britain’s local road network. But even if you submit a compensation claim the odds aren’t good, with around 40,000 requests for reimbursement turned down in 2024 alone.

“And with some councils not responding to our request for data, there’s every chance that we’re only seeing the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the claims that have been settled. But positively, councils received slightly fewer pothole compensation claims in 2024 than they did they year before.

“We’re now hopeful the dial will really begin to shift as highways authorities in England were this year given a record £1.6bn by the Government for road maintenance. And for the first time they’ve been required to show how much vital preventative maintenance they’ll be carrying out to stop potholes forming in the first place.

“On top of this, the Government has now announced multi-year settlements which will give councils the certainty they need to plan and deliver better maintenance programmes. This can only be a good thing.

“So, while the figures we’ve analysed are a cause for concern, we hope pothole compensation claims will begin to decline as local authorities increase the amount of preventative surface dressing work on their roads.”

* Based on a Freedom of Information request to councils in January 2025. The question asked to each authority was “How many claims for pothole-related damage did the council receive from drivers?” in 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024. 179 councils provided data for this question

** Local authority 2024 road lengths in miles, RDL0102

*** Based on the same FOI request. Question asked: “How many claims resulted in the council paying out to drivers (i.e. the number of successful pothole-related damage claims recorded)?” in 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024. 179 councils provided data for this question

**** According to RAC garage data from January 2025

***** Based on the same FOI request. Question asked: “What is the average sum that was paid out to drivers per claim?” in 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024. 161 councils provided data for this question

****** Research for the RAC Report on Motoring was carried out from 4-21 April 2025; 2,395 drivers. Results rim-weighted to be nationally representative of UK motorists

The rules, due to be introduced in October, apply to all new drivers but are particularly aimed at 17 to 23-year-olds. They include a six-month wait for learner drivers before taking a practical test, as well as restrictions on night-time driving and passenger numbers.

Infrastructure Minister Liz Kimmins said the changes were “aimed at young drivers who are sadly most likely to be killed or seriously injured on our roads”.

A senior Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) officer, Ch Supt Sam Donaldson, said the scheme would save lives on the roads.

Some young people who spoke to BBC News NI gave a mixed reaction to the reforms, with one saying they were “not looking forward to the changes”.

The Department for Infrastructure said graduated driving licences were aimed at revising training and testing for new drivers and motorcyclists.

The minister said that in 2024, there were 164 people killed or seriously injured in Northern Ireland’s roads from crashes caused by a driver aged between 17 and 23. “This age group of drivers account for 24% of fatal or serious collisions despite holding just 8% of licences,” she added.

Pat Delaney, director of operations in the Driver and Vehicle Agency Northern Ireland (DVANI) said the new measures would affect anyone who gets a provisional driving licence from 1 October. He said the overall aim of these changes was to “improve road safety” for young people.

What are in NI’s graduate driving license rules?

The major rule changes are:

>>> New drivers will not be permitted to take their driving test for at least six months after being granted a provisional licence, with the exemption of carers

>>> They must also complete 14 modules in a programme of training, which has to be signed off by an approved driving instructor or a supervising driver that could be a parent or guardian

>>> An increase in the restriction period from 12 months to 24 months requiring new drivers to display an ‘R’ plate style mark on their vehicles after passing their test – a different colour of ‘R’ plate will signify a driver in their initial six-month period

>>> For the first six months after passing their test, new drivers up to the age of 24 are only permitted to have one passenger aged between 14 and 20 in their car between the hours of 23:00 and 06:00

>>> That restriction would not include immediate family members and does not apply if someone aged 21 or over, who has held a driver’s licence for at least three years, is sitting in the front seat

>>> Learner drivers will be allowed to drive on the motorway if accompanied by an approved instructor and will be allowed to drive on the motorway up to the posted speed limit, after passing their test

The current speed limit of 45mph for restricted drivers will also be removed.

Drivers who do not follow the restrictions could receive three penalty points or a fine of up to £1,000.

PSNI Ch Supt Donaldson welcomed the scheme, and said he wished it could be introduced immediately.

“Young people who are 17, 18 and new drivers regardless of what age, they don’t recognise the risk the way perhaps some of us here a little bit older do,” he said.

“So I absolutely welcome this graduated response, some restrictions in terms of who they can carry, times of day they can travel and things like that because we’ve got to bring our new drivers on a slower journey to allow them to learn how to drive on the roads. That’s the way it’s done in Scandinavia and they have far safer roads than we have, so we’ve got to learn from them and we’ve got to bring this in.”

The Department for Infrastructure said it would shortly launch a public information campaign about graduated driver licensing, and officials would liaise with approved instructors, the PSNI and a range of others ahead of the new rules being introduced.