Blethers - Women are better drivers

Women are safer drivers than men. According to recent statistics, they are 20% safer on our roads.

New analysis based on the driving performance of 19 thousand drivers, over 40 million journeys and 154 million miles of travel has found categorically that women are better drivers than men.

The research was commissioned by the insurance industry ahead of the EU Gender Directive which comes into play next month.  The European Court of Justice has ruled that gender can no longer be used in the pricing of insurance products. In other words, women’s insurance premiums are set to rise to be more in line with their male counterparts.

And just as younger drivers are being targeted by insurance companies who provide telematics based insurance products which more accurately reflect their driving habits, so this might benefit those women whose insurance rates may yet rise.

  

Sandy Dunn, Chairman of Wunelli, which offers such a service, said: "Motor insurance rates to date have been based on estimations, trends and averages.  When the EU Gender Directive comes into play, insurers will need to rely more heavily on the postcode of the driver and the car type being driven to determine the premium.  For some women this won't be a bad thing, but others could see their premiums rocketing."

The analysis from Wunelli, the telematics systems provider indicates:

* Women drivers are 20% safer than men

* Women drive 28% less at night than men

* Women exceed the speed limit 12% less than men

* Women brake hard 11% less than men

In other words when it comes to renewal time, it may well be worth having a look around. Just one query though, I wonder if it was an all-female team that carried out the initial research, or is that carrying sexism a step too far?