MUA Insurance reveals findings on driving perceptions

The majority of respondents believe they are better drivers compared to their partners with a total of 70% admitting they think they are more skilled behind the wheel than their significant other. Male respondents were significantly more confident with 81% of respondents stating they were better drivers compared to only 59% of women.

Females are more cautious

The argument that female drivers are more cautious than males was also backed up by the survey, which indicated that 89% of women said they drive more carefully with a passenger in the car compared to 79% of men. A recent study by the University of New South Wales Transport and Road Safety research unit in Australia found that male drivers are four times more likely to be involved in fatal crashes compared to women.

It was promising to note that a total of 67% of respondents stated that they do not drive under the influence of alcohol. Female drivers once again came out tops with only 24% admitting they drive under the influence, compared with 41% of males who confessed to driving after a few drinks.

While it still remains a too commonly accepted practice, driving under the influence is illegal and insurance companies have the right to refuse paying out any claim if the driver is found guilty of drunk driving. The Road Accident Fund can also refuse to pay out claims resulting from a drunk driving accident.

Lowering speed limits

One area which demonstrated a very similar response across gender was whether they think a reduction in speed limits could contribute to a decrease in motor vehicle accidents. 78% of males and 76% of females were adamant that lowering the speed limit was not a sound solution.

While there have been many studies conducted around the effects of lowering of speed limits to reduce accidents, there is no unanimous stance. A study conducted by the Department of Transport in Britain found that reducing the speed limit did not necessarily reduce the number of accidents with the analysis finding that the average number of people killed or seriously injured each year rose from 18.7 to 19.9 since the introduction of slower 20mph traffic zones in 2007.

Some argue that speed kills and a lower speed limit may result in less serious accidents, while the other argument is that lower speed limits frustrate drivers, resulting in greater non-compliance and overtaking.