Bristol May 2010

The recent spate of thefts around Burton in Derbyshire of catalytic converters for their scrap value has left as many as a dozen vehicle owners with totally disabled vehicles. The Staffordshire police have launched an investigation into the recent thefts. There have been more than twelve stolen in the last three weeks.

The thieves seem to be after the larger 4 x 4′s and vans, presumably because the access under the vehicle is easier than a normal car. Reports suggest that the thieves are using angle grinders to remove the exhaust sections.

Van Breakers Are Helping Police

The converters contain high scrap value metals such as radium, platinum and palladium. The Staffordshire police have contacted van scrap yards and van breakers in an effort to apprehend the villains. Their spokesperson, Pete Stevens, confirmed that there has been a huge increase in thefts of catalytic converters in the area in the last few weeks. not only more than a dozen in the Burton area but also six reported thefts in Uttoxeter.

The owner of United vans commented “This news is appalling, especially for those that have been victims of these thefts. I am sure that the scrap yards in the area around these thefts will assist the police in any way they can. The fact that the thieves seem to be targeting something with a high scrap value doesn’t necessarily mean that the items will end up in a scrap yard. As an industry we have had, in the past, a reputation for dodgy practices but most professional van breakers yards are strictly above board, all the way, these days. Certainly if anyone were to turn up at our gate with a catalytic converter, that looked like it had been hastily cut from a vehicle, we would gather all the information we could and inform the local police immediately. I wish those that have been victims to these crimes every success in repairing their vehicles and hope the police catch the perpetrators very soon.”

Staffordshire police spokesperson, Pete Stevens, commented “Thieves seem to be targeting busy car parks, bigger vehicles, and at any time of the day. Two or three years ago there was a similar spate of thefts when the item was first realised to have a high scrap value, but it soon died down. We urge anyone who is offered these items for sale to contact us straight away. We have officers investigating the incidents trying to detect the thieves”

The state of the economy and reasonably high scrap values will cause many unscrupulous persons to imagine ways to make a fast buck, but this way is surely extremely risky to the persons involved and hopefully a short lived fad that will pass very soon.

For Further Information Please Contact:

United Vans.
T: 01761 452177
sales@unitedvans.com
www.UnitedVans.com

Home telecommunications mega giant Virgin Media has announced a 40% increase in subscribers to their new 50MB speed broadband service. While speed tests to verify the service beyond the street cabinet have not been made across the United Kingdom, the prevailing theory that higher speed is relative holds true. What this means is that very often a promised download speed is far greater than the actual speed at your computer. But if the promised speed is say ten MB and the tested speed is 3MB one may safely assume that on a 50 MB connection the delivered speed follows the proportion. Of course speed alone is never sufficient cause to switch broadband providers. It is however a factor to be examined in broadband reviews. Broadband reviews allow one to study all the pluses and minuses of service from any UK broadband provider. If one were to study broadband reviews in regards to Virgin Media they would learn of the aforementioned high speed option now available from Virgin as well as the option through Virgin Media of broadband without phone line rental. Virgin provides service via their own fibre optic cable network. That network now covers 51% of the UK. Most quality broadband reviews are impartial in tone and point the reader in the direction of much time saving information. An example of this would be explanations and guidelines for attaining one’s MAC code. Having your migration access code on hand can save weeks when switching broadband providers.

It is just too easy sometimes to stay in one place doing the same things over and over again. We drive the same type of cars, eat at the same restaurants and sometimes fall into the habit of wearing the same style of clothing year after year. And while this might be fine for some areas of our life when it comes to paying extra money for less service we need to stop and examine what we are doing.

Fully 50% of all United Kingdom home phone line users have never switched suppliers. We are far too complacent in this regard. Phone service across the nation has changed dramatically in the last ten years. The vast majority of UK home phone users chose to stick with BT despite lower prices being available from other equally reliable phone line providers. Sometimes the cost differential seems too small to bother with. The difference in price between BT and Primus for line rental is just 3 pounds per month. For many people 36 pounds a year isn’t worth the bother of switching for. But that difference climbs to almost five pounds every month if you do not allow BT to use paperless billing and to charge you via automatic debit. Also should you be an avid TV watcher you may very well be able to snag a deal for free home phone service and extra cheap phone calls as part of a general telecoms bundle.

Just about one year ago it was predicted that there was no possible chance of set top boxes equipped with high definition capability being available in time for World Cup. It was almost a given that in order to watch the matches in HD one would need to sign up for TV packages from mega channel providers SKY or Virgin Media. Almost as if on a dare manufacturer’s of set top boxes compatible with Freeview and Freesat were quick to put the needed technology into production. The boxes have been out for over four months and for footy devotees, the day is saved.

So why did this sudden burst of progress take place? Prices for High Definition televisions plummeted during the last year as viewers discovered how literally brilliant watching their favorite sports programmes on HD TV can be. This is especially true watching on a large widescreen LCD TV with a fast refresh rate.
You will be able to watch the England matches of World Cup in HD TV on BT Vision Channels, Freeview and Freesat. For HD Viewing of other Country’s action you may need to subscribe to a paid service from satellite or cable TV providers.

SKY has been offering 3D viewing of both movies and Premier League action. As of this moment 3D viewing of England’s matches for World Cup is not in the works. The FIFA has 25 matches planned for 3D but these will be shown in public venues. But one wonders… isn’t that exactly what was said about high definition just one year ago, if England were to make the finals?