Drivers under the age of 24 could face new restrictions for the first 6 months after passing their tests. This new proposal was suggested in a bid to cut road accidents.
The Association of British Insurers has also suggested that new drivers would need to learn for at least a year before being entered for their test.
Results show that an 18 year old is three times more likely to be in a car crash as their parent.
Nick Starling, the director general of insurance at the Association of British Insurers said that the measures are necessary to stop “over confident” young drivers causing “major catastrophes” for themselves and others as the most common situation for accidents are young drivers “late at night with friends in the back of the car.”
However, even though over confidence may be an issue, it may also be nervousness. I know that I was nervous driving the car for the first time on my own without my instructor or someone in the passenger seat.
Under the plans, young people under the age of 24 would be banned from driving after drinking any alcohol, going out on the roads between the hours of 11pm and 4am and carrying extra passengers for the first 6 months after passing their tests.
The Association of British Insurers also wants to see intensive driving courses which can be completed within 1 week banned.
Statistics show that in the UK only one in eight driving licence-holders are aged 25 or under, yet a third of those killed on the road are aged under 25. In addition, 27% of motor personal injury insurance claims over £500,000 result from a crash involving a driver aged 17-24.
Experts believe that these proposals will cause more confusion and be difficult to enforce. They believe that young drivers could already lower their insurance premiums by using a pay-as-you drive system that penalizes people who speed or brake too suddenly.
So should we adopt the new system and have issues but save lives, or take the easy way out, which may result in more deaths?
By Tara Lever
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