Category: IAM RoadSmart

1. One in five drivers is over 65

   Posted on 7:34am Friday 17th Jan 2014

   There are now more than seven million drivers over the age of 65 on the UK’s roads, according to road safety charity, the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM).

   The number of drivers over 65 reached 7,191,192 in November 2013. This makes up for 19 per cent of all drivers with full driving licences. The figures come from driving licence data published by the DVLA in December 2013.1 They also show that:

   · There are 4,068,498 drivers over the age of 70.

   · There are 1,101,779 drivers over the age of 80.

   · 195 drivers are over 100 years old

   Of the drivers over 65, 367,711 or five per cent have points on their licence.

   For drivers over seventy the figure is 195, 773 or five per cent with points.

   35,498, three per cent of drivers over 80 have points.

   This compares favourably with middle-aged drivers. The age group most likely to have points on their licence is 42 year-olds. Of the 816,915 licence holders in that group, 82,929 or 10 per cent have points.

   For younger drivers the figures are 3, 339, 826 licence holders, 270,817 with points, or 8 per cent.

   This supports research by the IAM that shows that older drivers are in fact safer than many other drivers. Where older drivers have slower reaction times, they use their experience on the road to compensate by driving at slower speeds on all occasions and allowing more space between them and other road users.2

   IAM chief executive Simon Best said: “In twenty years time, one in ten people will be over 80 years old. Responding to an older population is a significant policy issue for government, health and transport agencies – a greater number of people will require help with their mobility and acting now can ensure the right support networks are in place numbers increase. Easy access to driving assessments, better advice from the medical profession and car and road designs that mitigate the effects of ageing should all be top in 2014. The overarching policy aim should be to keep people independent and driving safer for as long as possible.”

2. New 45 points record for driver‏

   Posted on 9:00am Tuesday 7th Jan 2014

   A man from Liverpool accumulated 45 licence penalty points in November, according to figures released by the DVLA1  following an IAM freedom of information request.  The points were all for failing to disclose the identity of the driver or exceeding statutory speed limit on a public road, between 01 October 2012 and 20 June 2013.   This beats the previous record of 42 points.

   The second-highest points total, 36, went to a man from Warrington, Cheshire, who was caught driving without insurance six times in less than two weeks, between 20 February and 2 March 2012.

   Other notable offenders include:

   · A woman from Lincoln with 34 points, who was caught speeding three times and failed to give information to identify the driver four times between 15 January 2012 and 26 September 2012.

   · A female from Hull with 31 points, who was caught speeding eight times in two months, between 29 September 2011 and 29 November 2011.

   · A man from Westcliff-on-Sea, with 30 points who was caught speeding six times in just two weeks, between 30 September and 13 October 2012.

   Failing to give the identity of the owner, speeding, and driving uninsured are the most common reasons for points.

   Of the top twenty licence-points holders, only three are women.

   IAM chief executive Simon Best said: “Last September, the IAM highlighted a driver with 42 points on their license and we were told that more would be done to address the issue. Incredibly, we now have someone driving with 45 points.  DVLA must rapidly overall their systems and working relationships with the courts to ensure that the whole principle of 12 points and you are off the road is not undermined.

   “Any suggestion that some drivers may be able to speed with impunity and then talk themselves out of a ban puts our whole approach to enforcement into question.  The police and the motoring public need to have confidence that those caught speeding or breaking other motoring laws will be dealt with equally.”

3. Drive safely in the stormy weather‏

   Posted on 10:47am Monday 6th Jan 2014

   Road safety charity the IAM is offering tips from Britain’s top advanced driver, Peter Rodger. Following severe weather warnings of storms over the coming days, the IAM is advising on how to drive in windy weather.

   In the wind

   · Strong winds can also unsettle your car and even change your direction of travel. Grip your steering wheel firmly and also be ready for the effects of the wind on other road users, particularly motorcyclists and flat-sided vehicles like lorries.

   · Plan your journey – is there a route with less exposure to the weather and less risk of fallen trees?  Choose a sheltered route if you have the option.

   · Strong winds are not constant, they are usually gusty so ensure you hold the steering wheel firmly.

   · Overtaking high sided vehicles or driving past buildings can result in a sudden gust from the side as you clear.

   · Give cyclists, motorcyclists, lorries and buses more room than usual.  They get blown around by side winds easily.  Even pedestrians can be blown about.

   · Watch trees and bushes on the roadside - their branches can show you how strong the wind is.  Look well ahead, that way you don’t need to take your eye off the road and you can see any windy patches before you get to them.

   · Go slow enough to cope with the gusts.  Wind can get under a car and reduce its handling and braking significantly.

   · Keep an eye on what is happening to other vehicles – where they are affected will give you a pre warning.

   · Go slowly enough to cope with the tree that has fallen right across the road, just round the bend where you can’t see it.

   · Be careful of debris, try and have space beside you in case you need to dodge it.

   In the rain

   · Before you set off, set your heater controls – rain can makes the windows mist up in seconds. You don’t want to be fiddling with controls when you should be concentrating on the road.

   · See and be seen. Put your lights on – as a rule of thumb, whenever you need to use your wipers you should also turn your dipped headlights on, and before overtaking put your wipers on their fastest setting.

   · Keep your eyes on the road ahead and plan your driving so that you can brake, accelerate and steer smoothly – harsh manoeuvres will unbalance the car.

   · Slow down. In the rain stopping distance is at least doubled. Giving yourself more space also helps to avoid spray, especially when following a large vehicle.

   · If you have cruise control, avoid using it on wet roads – you need to pay more attention to the road surface conditions and alter your speed gently.

4. Young driver penalty points record shows need for reform

   Posted on 8:29am Wednesday 18th Dec 2013

   The current way we train new drivers is clearly failing to produce safe and law abiding motorists, particularly men, according to road safety charity, the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM).

   Thirty-thousand, eight hundred and fifty male drivers aged 20 or under have up to six points on their license, according to data released by the DVLA.¹  This compares with only 9, 758 young female drivers with up to six points on their license.

   The breakdown by age is:

   	3 points	4 points	5 points	6 points
   Male  17	837	8	7	358
   Female 17	36	0	0	0
   Male 18	3,280	78	130	986
   Female 18	705	15	25	70
   Male 19	7,717	176	296	1,904
   Female 19	2,542	47	73	230
   Male 20	12,236	166	558	3,113
   Female 20	5,229	82	117	587

    

   During 2012, young drivers were involved in a fifth of all collisions where someone was killed or seriously injured.  Yet younger drivers only account for eight per cent of all full driving licence holders in Great Britain, they also drive, on average, about half the distance of older drivers each year.

   IAM chief executive Simon Best said: “Such high numbers committing a wide range of offences demonstrates the inability of our current system to deal with the attitudes and lack of experience which put new drivers at such high risk on the roads today. The government is currently working on a Green Paper for young drivers and this must better address the content and process of learning to drive so that our roads are safer for all road users.”

5. A third of drivers simply don’t enjoy driving anymore, according to a poll by road safety charity, the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM)

   Posted on 11:32am Friday 13th Dec 2013

   ... according to a poll by road safety charity, the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM).

   The main reason given for not enjoying driving on the roads was the cost of fuel (51%) closely followed by congestion (41%), no longer excited by driving (28%) and less leisure time (25.9%).

   Other findings include:
   • Overall thirty-nine per cent of respondents still consider driving and riding for fun as their hobby.
   • One third of respondents still go out for a spin.
   • Fifty-three per cent of respondents think compared with other road users they are good drivers, with just over forty-five per cent responding that they are very good.
   • Seventy-eight per cent of respondents would usually drive when out with their partner.
   • Half of respondents don’t always feel relaxed when their partner is in the passenger seat.

   It seems that other road users are the problem with over sixty per cent of respondents stating that it’s the behaviour of other drivers on the road that makes them feel the most nervous. This was followed by bad weather conditions and driving near to lorries.

   IAM chief executive Simon Best said: “With congestion and fuel prices it’s easy to understand why many people think driving is a chore. But the UK still has some of the most beautiful roads in the world and if you have the right skills and confidence in your ability driving can be as enjoyable as ever.”