Autumn 2008

Stop the carnage: survey call to ‘ban’ young sports car drivers

A NEW SURVEY of UK motorists has led to calls for an effective ban on young drivers from legally driving high powered sports cars.

With the death rate for young drivers doubling in the past five years, a new call has gone out for greater restrictions on young drivers who have just passed their tests.

Most women motorists – 52% in fact – say young drivers should be refused insurance cover on sporty or high powered cars.

And nearly half of all motorists – 49% - agree.

So says a new nationwide survey of UK motorists by car breakdown service Autonational Rescue.

Ronan Hart, Autonational’s marketing manager, said: “It just goes to show the level of concern at the increasing death rate among young drivers under 21.

“The survey reflects the fact that most drivers are really worried by the continuing carnage on Britain’s roads sometimes caused by very young and inexperienced drivers in inappropriate, high powered cars.”

In total 21 per cent of all drivers also agreed that P plates should be displayed for a period after young drivers have passed their driving test, while nine per cent thought that limits should be imposed on the numbers of passengers they should be allowed to carry.

Six per cent of motorists even thought that new drivers should be given a “curfew”, and not allowed to drive between midnight and 5 am when many high speed accidents happen.

A third more young drivers were killed in 2004 than in 2000.

Many of these crashes happened to groups of young people travelling together late at night, often with the driver under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

And research has shown that 40 per cent of young driver accidents - resulting in death or serious injury - are between the hours of 11 pm and 6 am. This compares with 20 per cent at all other times.

The independent survey was carried out across the UK by CAPI Omnibus based on a representative sample of around 1,000 adults at 72 sampling points.

Autonational Rescue is the car breakdown service with the no claims bonus, for more information visit www.autonational.co.uk or call 08459 100 345.

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Issued by: CPR Works Ltd
Contact: Roger Eversley/Jenny Carr
Tel: 01902 680068
E-mail: info@cpr.co.uk
Web: www.cpr.co.uk