Skip to main content

Young drivers admit they are unsafe

Nearly half of new young drivers in the UK admit they are unsafe on the road and think that they are not being taught enough about road safety, with two thirds of parents agreeing, according to a new report. The poll of 1,000 young motorists and their parents found that 50 per cent of drivers under 24 would not know where to start with basics like checking their tyres. Less than half of young road users know what the legal tyre tread limit is and one in five have no idea what solution, such as a spare ty
September 30, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
Nearly half of new young drivers in the UK admit they are unsafe on the road and think that they are not being taught enough about road safety, with two thirds of parents agreeing, according to a new report.

The poll of 1,000 young motorists and their parents found that 50 per cent of drivers under 24 would not know where to start with basics like checking their tyres. Less than half of young road users know what the legal tyre tread limit is and one in five have no idea what solution, such as a spare tyre, they have available in an event of a puncture.

Mark Griffiths of Continental Tyres, which carried out the research, said: “Every day in the UK, around nine people die or are seriously injured from a road accident that involves a young car driver. It is vital for 17 to 24 year olds to receive adequate road safety information as they learn to drive, setting them up for a lifetime of safe motoring.”

Related Content

  • September 23, 2016
    New driver study reveals Britain’s ten worst driving habits
    According to a study by business driving expert, the Fuelcard Company, which questioned 1,000 drivers across the UK more than half of British drivers (52 per cent) have picked up some potentially dangerous driving habits. These include going too fast or too slow, texting while driving, using the phone or hands-free, eating or smoking at the wheel, driving too close to other vehicles, throwing rubbish out of the window, hogging the middle lane and checking phone notifications. Interestingly, more than
  • March 2, 2017
    Double penalties for motorists using mobiles
    From 1 March 2017, UK drivers caught using a phone while driving will face tougher penalties. Under new legislation announced by the Department for Transport, offenders will receive six penalty points on their licence and a £200 fine, up from the previous three points and £100 penalty.
  • November 27, 2013
    Extra enforcement key to cutting road casualties in The Netherlands
    While The Netherlands already has some of the safest roads in the world it has ambitious plans to make them safer still, as Jon Masters discovers. In virtually all periodical studies and comparisons of countries’ road safety performance, the Netherlands is consistently in the top three and often leads the world, depending on how casualty figures are compared. According to the International Traffic Safety Data & Analysis Group (IRTAD) of the International Transport Forum, road deaths per capita have falle
  • November 6, 2015
    Technology, social media bigger perceived threats than drink-driving, IAM finds
    Motorists are now more worried about the dangers of distraction posed by technology and social media than drink-driving, according to the Institute of Advanced Motorist’s (IAM) first major survey into safety culture. The Safety Culture Index report was launched today by the IAM, and is a study of more than 2,000 UK motorists’ attitudes to driving safety and behaviour on our roads. IAM claims it will form a definitive baseline to track changes over time, providing the opportunity to examine how attitudes