Two in three young people say they have been a passenger in a speeding car, and more than half of those put their lives at risk by not asking the driver to slow down, new research has found.
The Brake and CIS Co-operative Insurance (CIS) research questioned 4,500 young people aged 15 to 25 and 65% said they had been a passenger in a car driven at more than 40mph in a 30mph limit or more than 70mph on a rural road. Of these, only 42% asked the driver to slow down.
The government recently identified the issue of young driver safety in its Road Safety Strategy Review and indicated it would be overhauling the driving test.
Jools Townsend, head of education at Brake, said: “Too many people have died due to a deadly combination of inexperience and recklessness among many young drivers. More will die if positive steps are not taken immediately to educate young people and reform the learning to drive process.”
David Neave, CIS director of general insurance said: “As a responsible insurer our role isn't just about picking up the pieces when dealing with the resultant claims. Our message is clear – let's stop the growing number of fatalities.”
