A Statement from the Club

Covid-19… and Blatting

In this Club, we’re all obviously responsible people and need to exercise our own judgement!   The Club is however committed to following and passing on the latest advice from the UK Government (and other bodies) on events and public gatherings that may be pertinent to our members.  In the current changing situation, please avoid actions that might as a group create the wrong impression or, at worst, go against rules that we in the Club have all worked so hard not to break.

General guidance – we’ve based this on a communication being circulated around car clubs by the Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs and other car Enthusiast Clubs.

The latest information from the government states that non-essential travel is now allowed. However, from Monday 1 June (or now in Scotland and Northern Ireland), rules on public gathering numbers have changed and there are heavy penalties in place for those that ignore the rules.  At the current time, the Club is still not resuming its monthly area meets, organised blats, events, etc.

Please do NOT gather to drive in groups or convoys

Gatherings (and travel for gatherings) can:

- not be more than 6 people (England).

- not be more than 6 people (Northern Ireland).

- not be more than 8 people, from 2 households (Scotland) - less than 5 miles travel advised.

- be any number of people from 2 households (Wales) - less than 5 miles travel advised.

It is important that owners of Lotus or Caterham 7 or 21 vehicles do not gather in parks, or places of natural beauty. By all means, use your vehicle individually, to drive to the shops, go out for exercise or just a ‘drive’, but only individually.

Please remember, as drivers of 7s and 21s, we are all ambassadors for the Club and indeed for the whole car club scene as a whole.  Furthermore, Motorsport UK has suspended all permits in the UK until July at the earliest, so any convoy or road run with a pre-determined route or start/end point on public highways would be considered illegal and will not be insured. This does not affect trackdays which may occur before July.

At this moment in time, the Club feels that it strikes very much the wrong tone with the public to parade our little cars through the streets and country lanes in groups when many people are still in isolation within their homes or experiencing hardship or the loss of loved ones.  The time will come, soon we hope, but it is not yet.  The latest advice, issued 13 May 2020, urges common sense around taking any car out for leisure drives. It’s vitally important that Club members drive with caution, as lockdown measures could very quickly return following a second spike if guidelines are not followed.

Key points :

• The pandemic is NOT over. The lives of our families and friends are still at risk.
• Check your vehicle over carefully if it’s not been used for a while, paying particular attention to tyres and brakes.
• Maintain social distancing of 2 metres.
• If you previously declared your 7 or 21 as being on SORN to the DVLA , be sure to update it before taking to the road. Where applicable.
• If you didn’t renew your insurance policy during lockdown, do it right away.
• If your vehicle needs one, do you have an MOT? The six month extension only applies to cars that were due an MOT after 30 March 2020.
• Due to variations in advised travel distances in different countries, it is recommended not to cross national borders unless absolutely necessary.
• If you begin to display any new symptoms. Please self-isolate immediately and consult the NHS advice below.
• For NHS information, visit https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/
• For more information on COVID-19, visit www.who.int
• To view UK Government advice, visit www.gov.uk

Please be assured that during this rapidly changing situation, we are monitoring advice very closely and will follow up with Club members as and when the situation develops.