Driving test is failing us, say young drivers

New research released today reveals that just a fifth (20%) of young drivers[i] feel their driving test adequately prepares them to handle the distractions and challenges of the road.

The study commissioned by Marmalade, a leading provider of cars and insurance for young drivers, also reveals that half (50%) feel that their driving lessons failed to set them up for many of the realities of driving alone.

And the impact of this is very real – with figures from the Department for Transport showing that one in five new drivers have an accident within a year of passing their driving test[ii]. The high instance of accidents involving new drivers and the fact that young drivers are feeling unprepared demonstrates that more action is required to improve their skills and confidence.  

Marmalade has today launched the UK’s first telematics insurance policy that specifically offers young drivers tailored ‘on- the-road’ training when they have been recorded driving dangerously. The ‘black box’ technology has been proven to reduce the risk of a young driver being involved in an accident by 74 percent. Meanwhile, the training, run by road safety charity IAM RoadSmart, offers guidance on many areas of driving including rural roads, dealing with distractions, parking and manoeuvring.

Marmalade’s Black Box Insurance policyholders are offered the training when their black box records three ‘red’ journeys. A red journey is where they have had a number of points in their journey where they have driven at risk, e.g. harsh braking, acceleration or excessive speeding.

The driver simply needs to complete the £85 training course and their premiums remain the same. These policies will be underwritten by LV= Broker.

In addition, the black box rewards good and safe driving, with young motorists who drive well receiving an extra discount when they renew. Therefore any young drivers who do undertake the training course could well see their renewals price fall as they put their new training into practice.

The course is also available to drivers that haven’t recorded three red journeys but feel uncertain about driving on the roads and want to use the course to boost confidence.

Crispin Moger, CEO for Marmalade said: “This data suggests that many young drivers are unprepared for life on the road. The safety of our policy holders is our biggest priority and we are constantly looking for ways in which we can support them. We find that the black box really helps young drivers improve their confidence and reduces their risk of having an accident in the first six months of their policy by 62 percent, compared to national statistics*, as they are able to review their journeys and highlight areas for improvement.

“We are proud to be the first insurer in the UK partnering with IAM RoadSmart and LV= Broker to offer this course to young drivers. It’s crucial that young drivers are given the opportunity to develop their driving skills and ultimately boost their confidence behind the wheel.”

Peter Rodger, Head of Driver Advice, IAM RoadSmart adds: “Anything that allows new young drivers gain confidence and learn the key skills of observation, anticipation and planning will help them become safer and greener drivers. Using black box data to target the key behaviours that lead to crashes is major step forward and we are very happy to be partnering with Marmalade on this new and valuable initiative.”

Marmalade is passionate about encouraging, promoting and supporting safe driving behaviours and uses telematics technology as a means of achieving this. The telematics device provides a means of recording and showing the driving behaviours exhibited by the people named on the policy.

[i] Research conducted by Fly Research in June  2019 with 1,000 UK drivers under the aged of 30

[ii] https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-looks-at-steps-to-make-new-drivers-safer