Smartphone apps creating more distraction for young drivers

Recent survey findings from Ingenie, a UK car insurance brand for young drivers, have revealed that 58 per cent of 17-25 year old drivers agree that smartphone apps are causing young people to be more distracted at the wheel. The company commissioned the survey of 1,000 young drivers, conducted by One Poll, which has uncovered the extent of how smartphones and social media are distracting 17-25 year olds when behind the wheel.
April 30, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
Recent survey findings from 5351 Ingenie, a UK car insurance brand for young drivers, have revealed that 58 per cent of 17-25 year old drivers agree that smartphone apps are causing young people to be more distracted at the wheel. The company commissioned the survey of 1,000 young drivers, conducted by One Poll, which has uncovered the extent of how smartphones and social media are distracting 17-25 year olds when behind the wheel.

The survey revealed:

  • Over 40% admitted to answering their phones while driving without a hands-free set
  • 44% said they had sent a text message, and 62% said they had read a message while they were driving
  • 1 in 6 male drivers under 25 has crashed due to mobile phone usage at the wheel
  • One third of under 25s who use Facebook on their phone admitted to using it whilst driving
  • 18% of under 25s who have ‘Draw Something’ on their phone have played the game whilst driving - 17% for Angry Birds
  • Hands-free kits encourage 53% more young drivers to make longer calls at the wheel (longer than five minutes)

The results collected from the survey suggest that the increasing range of apps and functionality available on mobile devices is contributing to young driver distraction - even mobile games, which take a high level of concentration are taking young people's attention away from the roads.

On the growing range of dangerous distractions created by smartphones, Ingenie founder and CEO Richard King said, "We're in the middle of a perfect storm, where the rapid growth of social media and mobile is creating a new breed of in-car distraction.”

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • New App alerts emergency services after a collision
    July 20, 2015
    Launched in time for the summer holiday season, Collision Call is a new app which automatically calls and alerts emergency services after a serious collision and sends an e-mail to family, work and friends, allowing them to take immediate action. The app measures G-forces which occur during a collision. If those forces exceed a certain level, dangerous to humans, the app automatically calls the alarm number in the relevant country and sends e-mails to programmed contacts. To prevent this from happening w
    Read More
  • Authorities look to MaaS for new solutions and cost savings
    July 18, 2017
    The structure of society and the way in which our cities work will be completely transformed by Mobility as a Service (MaaS), Finland’s minister of transport and communications Anne Berner, told ITS International’s recent MaaS Market conference 2017 in London. In her keynote address, Berner told a packed audience of more than 200 ITS professionals that MaaS has the potential to help governments around the world meet their big city targets such as the rate of employment, the environment, the efficient use of
    Read More
  • £10.6m boost for Glasgow sustainable travel
    July 8, 2025
    Initiatives to encourage more walking and cycling will receive funding
    Read More
  • Independence and mobility key for older drivers, IAM report finds
    February 18, 2016
    The majority of older drivers want to continue driving as long as they are safely able, according to a survey commissioned by the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM), citing independence and convenience as the main reasons. The report, Keeping Older Drivers Safe and Mobile, surveyed more than 2,600 drivers and ex-drivers between the ages of 55 and 101 and was written by Dr Carol Hawley from the University of Warwick Medical School. Although the report found 84 per cent of driver respondents rated th
    Read More

Highlighted Content