I’m in shock – deep, deep shock

I owe an apology to my reader. I haven’t communicated with you in over a week and realise, belatedly, how bereft you must feel.

The only excuse I have is that I am in shock – deep, deep shock.

You see, I attended my former employer’s AGM last Wednesday. Archant (that’s a real, not made up, name) has not had a successful time in recent years.

Two chief executives came and went, laden down with payoffs and pension pots.

The company now has a new head honcho and, for the first time since I retired in 2006, I have faith that the business can be put on a more even keel.

He even mentioned the D word – dividend. We shareholders may actually see one for the current financial year, he hopes, if everything planned comes to fruition, the spirits are with Archant, the wind is behind the company and the piece of lucky heather left at reception at the Norwich HQ works.

As I said, I’m in shock – at last a chief executive who may actually know what he’s talking about. I just hope he can now walk the walk.

As you know, I spent several years visiting the Algarve on a regular basis – I probably made more than 60 trips in seven or eight years on business and holiday.

Those expeditions all involved car hire. I mention this merely because a friend from the sunny south of Europe posted something on Facebook the other day – the fact that motorists going abroad after June 8 are being warned they may need to take a special code with them if they want to hire a car.

It seems that from that date the paper counterpart of British driving licences - which records endorsements and fines - is being computerised.

Anyone wanting to hire a car abroad could need a code to show convictions for offences like speeding.

To obtain it, motorists will have to log on to the DVLA website beforehand.

But the code is only valid for 72 hours, so anyone wanting to hire a car more than three days into their trip may need to generate a new code while they are abroad.

And after all that kerfuffle the code is not an official requirement and it will depend on the individual hire company's terms whether or not it is required.

Good luck is all I can really say to anyone hiring a car in Europe this summer.

Although there is just one more thing. I am sure many car hire firms will use this as a way to take even more money from the punters.

I could write a book about the scams they use to extract a few more Euros from hirers. But that’ll have to wait until another day.