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Dangerous Driving Becoming More Common
Thu, 16 Jul 2009

Nearly 70 per cent of Britons have driving habits that pose a threat to other road users, according to new research by Sainsburys Car Insurance .

A survey of drivers’ top 10 bad habits in June 2009, conducted by the insurance provider, found that more than two-thirds (69 per cent) of motorists behaved dangerously while driving last month – a rise of 4 per cent compared with the same period last year.

Eating or drinking while driving was found to be the most common dangerous habit, with 43 per cent of those polled admitting to have done this while behind the wheel of a car in June.

Driving while felling tired was admitted to by 32 per cent per cent of respondents, while 17 per cent said they were guilty of speeding, 14 per cent drove a vehicle while wearing flip flops/no shoes and 12 per cent admitted to using a handheld mobile phone .

A further 9 per cent of drivers confessed to getting behind the wheel after having an alcoholic drink and 10 per cent said they had driven 'the morning after the night before'.

Other bad habits included reading a map while driving (11 per cent), and driving with a pet loose in the car (8 per cent).

Unsurprisingly, men were found to be more likely than women to engage in dangerous driving habits, with 11 million male drivers admitting to careless driving in the past month, compared to just 8.3 million females.

Lucy Hunter, manager of Sainsbury's Car Insurance, commented: " People who drive regularly can sometimes become too self-assured behind the wheel, especially if they are driving on roads they know well."

"Often this leads them to drive in a manner that significantly increases the level of risk to themselves, their passengers and other road users."

"Unfortunately many motorists get distracted too easily while driving and don't consider the possible consequences of their actions."

She added: "We urge motorists to concentrate at the wheel and not be tempted to engage in anything that could distract them."
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