A third say they know a bad driver

Seemingly innocent actions in the car can lead to careless or distracted behaviour – a significant contributor to collisions and dangerous driving.

A recent Quotezone survey warned 83% of drivers had witnessed dangerous behaviour on the road, with a third (32%) admitting they knew a bad driver within their friend or family circle.

Interestingly, of the 1000 drivers surveyed across the UK, 97% felt that they themselves, were good drivers and 83% were prepared to report others for their bad driving and dangerous acts.

Analysts from Quotezone.co.uk then researched where in the UK the worst drivers appeared to be, ranking each region in Great Britain for penalty points against their volume of drivers.

Yorkshire topped the list, showing 7.8% of drivers with penalty points. 

Closely followed by South West England and East Midlands with 6.3% and 6.2% of drivers with penalty points respectively.

Penalty points are a key indicator of a driver’s ability and behaviour, with points added to the licence if they commit an offence such as running a red light, speeding or using a mobile while driving.

Greg Wilson, CEO and car insurance expert at Quotezone.co.uk said: “Penalty points are intended to stop motorists from driving dangerously, the more serious the motoring offence, the more points a driver will get – with some of the most serious and also the most common offences being speeding, driving under the influence and using a mobile phone while driving.

“It only takes a moment to get distracted or lose concentration but that can’t happen behind the wheel, drivers need to be mindful of the dangers and wary of all other road users.

“In a recent Quotezone survey, we asked over 1000 people if they’d report other road users for dangerous driving, 83% said they would and 83% also said they had actually witnessed a dangerous act.  We also asked if they would consider any of their friends or family as bad drivers, with a third saying yes, they would.

“Quotezone data then showed Yorkshire as the region with the most dangerous drivers, with 7.8% of drivers with penalty points.

“Every conviction including a penalty point is also likely to increase car insurance premiums by 5% for three points and 25% for six points – our survey showed 47% had their premium price affected by penalty points.”

References:

Data source – Quotezone reviewed a sample of 100,000 car insurance policies throughout the UK from January 2023 – January 2024.

Survey source – Quotezone.co.uk’s findings are based on a randomised survey of 1,000 respondents across the UK during May 2024, which represents a margin of error of approximately 5% at a 95% confidence level.