New research, undertaken by a UK car insurance firm through independent online research company FlyResearch, has shown that the comments of backseat drivers may increase the chance of a crash occurring by 60% and it is motorists who have insurance for young drivers who are most at risk of becoming angry due to comments about their driving made by passengers.
The study, which surveyed 1,036 British motorists over four days in May 2011, found that 51% of drivers admitted to becoming angry at comments made by backseat drivers and 40% were made anxious by remarks.
According to the collected data, 14% of road users in the study had a crash or near-miss accident due to the presence of a backseat driver.
From the information gathered, the insurer predicted that if new driver car insurance holders, under the age of 20, were “restricted to carrying no more than one passenger for the first six months after they pass their test” 270 deaths and serious road traffic injuries could be prevented.
The car insurer’s head of risk and underwriting, Mike Pickard, stated that “the risk posed to drivers by distracting or interfering passengers should not be underestimated.
“Passengers should respect the driver of their vehicle and appreciate that motorists already face a multitude of distractions when behind the wheel – and should try not to add to these.”
If passengers take care not to distract inexperienced motorists, who hopefully have insurance for young drivers, when they are behind the wheel, the UK would possibly see a marked reduction in accidents, injuries and fatalities.
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