Open Road

As you will be aware the advice from the government has been updated with new rules coming into effect from 4th July 2020.

Principal changes aid sections of the hospitality industry to re-open initially in England while restrictions remain in force in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Where it comes to Public gatherings, heavy penalties remain in place within the legislation, while guidelines are easing slightly for life event groups (weddings, funerals etc), the rules for general group activity remain unchanged and still urge the avoidance of meetings of more than 6 people from different households in an outdoor space and two households indoors.

Where destinations and some attractions may be able to reopen, they are also operating under heavy restrictions to enforce and maintain social distancing. Many venues will be operating a pre-book only policy and all venues will be required to record the personal details of anyone entering their premises.

At the current time, the MX-5 Owners Club strongly advises all our organisers and regional areas to continue to work to postponement of all social activities and refrain from road runs or any other meets in groups, until further notice. 

We do know there are lots of members who are keen to get out driving and meet up again, however we must also balance this with the many who will also remain more cautious, additionally we also still need to consider the different lockdown measures in England from the rest of the UK.

Please do NOT drive in groups or convoys.
It is important that large groups of car owners do not congregate in particular areas such as parks, or places of natural beauty. Of course, we encourage you to use your MX-5s individually where you can to drive for enjoyment and wellbeing, or to go to the shops or go out for exercise, but this remains individually.

Please remember that as members and a Club, we are not only ambassadors for the Mazda MX-5 and the MX-5 Owners Club, but also the car club community as a whole.

At this moment we also feel that while many people are still in self-isolation within their homes or experiencing hardship or the loss of loved ones, the tone is not right to publicly parade cars through the streets, towns and country lanes.

The time will come, soon we hope, that we can get back to doing what we all enjoy as a Club, but it is not quite yet.

The guidance as issued on 26th June 2020, still urges us to ‘Remain Alert and Safe’. It remains very clear that the virus is very much still with us and looks set to be for some time, how this continues to effect daily lives is changing regularly, but even now as these measures are announced thousands of new positive cases are reported every day.
Our vigilance has to remain, the virus has not gone away and we ask all members to be mindful of their own safety as well as the impact of actions on others, lockdown measures could very quickly return with the spread of new cases.

Key points :

  • The pandemic is NOT over – the lives of our families and friends are still at risk.
  • If you’ve not used your car for a while, please check it over carefully paying particular attention to battery, tyres and brakes and fluids.
  • If you previously declared your MX-5 as being on SORN, or haven’t renewed your insurance policy during Lockdown, be sure to update these before taking to the road.
  • Do you have or need an MOT? The six month extension only applies to cars that were due an MOT AFTER 30th March
  • Maintain social distancing of 2 metres where possible (1 metre in certain circumstances – refer to Government guidelines).
  • For more information on COVID-19 visit who.int
  • To view UK Government advice visit: gov.uk
  • For NHS information visit: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/

Please be assured that during this rapidly changing situation, we are monitoring advice very closely and will follow up with MX-5 Owners Club  members when the situation changes.

Please note:
As our volunteer organisers announce any changes, postponements or cancellations to events, we ask that members support them in their decisions.

Guidance in brief for England from July 4th … (Scotland, Wales, N.I may currently differ). 

  • you can meet in groups of up to two households (your support bubble counts as one household) in any location – public or private, indoors or outdoors. You do not always have to meet with the same household – you can meet with different households at different times. However, it remains the case – even inside someone’s home – that you should socially distance from anyone not in your household or bubble. This change also does not affect the support you receive from your carers
  • when you are outside you can continue to meet in groups of up to six people from different households, following social distancing guidelines
  • those who have been able to form a support bubble (i.e. those in single adult households) can continue to have close contact as if they live with the other people in the bubble, but you should not change who you have formed a support bubble with
  • additional businesses and venues, including restaurants, pubs, cinemas, visitor attractions, hotels, and campsites will be able to open – but we will continue to keep closed certain premises where the risks of transmission may be higher
  • other public places, such as libraries, community centres, places of worship, outdoor playgrounds and outdoor gyms will be able to open
  • you can stay overnight away from your home with your own household or support bubble, or with members of one other household (where you need to keep social distancing)
  • it will be against the law to gather in groups larger than 30 people, except for a limited set of circumstances to be set out in law. Police will have the power to break up groups larger than 30, apart from these exceptions

Moving forward, from 4 July, people will be trusted to continue acting responsibly by following this and related guidance, subject to an upper legal limit on gatherings (as described above). To avoid risks of transmission and stay as safe as possible, you should always maintain social distancing with people you do not live with – indoors and outdoors. You should only have close social contact with others if you are in a support bubble with them.
You should:

  • only gather indoors with members of up to two households (your support bubble counts as one household) – this includes when dining out or going to the pub
  • only gather outdoors in a group of more than six people from different households or in larger groups if everyone is from up to two households only
  • only gather in slightly larger groups of up to 30 for major life events, such as weddings, funerals etc.
  • only visit businesses and venues in groups of up to two households (your support bubble counts as one household) or with a group of six people from different households if outdoors
  • not interact socially with anyone outside the group you are attending these places with even if you see other people you know, for example, in a restaurant, community centre or place of worship
  • try to limit the number of people you see, especially over short periods of time, to keep you and them safe, and save lives – the more people you have interactions with, the more chances we give the virus to spread
  • not hold or attend celebrations (such as parties) where it is difficult to maintain social distancing when gathering in the group sizes advised
  • only stay overnight away from your home in groups of up to two households (your support bubble counts as one household)
  • when asked, provide your contact details to a business so that you can be contacted as needed by the NHS Test and Trace programme.

Please adhere to these guidelines to protect the health of yourself and others. 

 

MX-5 Owners Club