At the end of January I had the first taste of being in front of a camera in my role as IAM RoadSmart’s young driver ambassador. I was invited by Boston Advanced Motorists to join them at Listers Mini dealership in Boston. The group had organised an ‘assessed drive’ video to be created; the idea was to create a short video that demonstrates what an assessed drive involves, focussing on the stress-free element of these sessions.

Buying a new car is an exciting experience, but there are a few things to bear in mind as you drive your pride and joy away from the showroom. This week’s tips give advice on driving a new car, from IAM RoadSmart’s head of driving and riding standards Richard Gladman.

There are several changes coming to the MOT test, starting on 20 May (apart from in Northern Ireland, where they have a separate MOT system). The most obvious will be a new, more elaborate way of classifying defects. Currently, each item is simply marked as Fail or Pass. In future, defects leading to the car failing the test will be categorised as Dangerous or Major.

I’m not superstitious but sometimes weird things happen that I can’t explain and I get a bit spooked. For example, one evening last week I was sitting in my favourite chair, thinking about plans for the weekend. Nothing unusual there. Suddenly I remembered that my girlfriend Kim (playing with her phone on the sofa opposite) had made some tentative plans to have lunch with a friend. “You still meeting Jen on Saturday?” I asked. At that precise moment, Kim’s phone went ‘ping’ announcing a text message from (you’ve guessed it) Jen, cancelling on lunch.

We have all come across road rage at some point in our driving lives. When it happens, it can leave you feeling intimidated and scared. But with a bit of planning you can prevent the situation altogether. Richard Gladman, head of driving and riding standards, provides a few top tips about how to avoid being a victim of road rage, and what to do if it escalates.