Young male drivers far more likely than females to have penalty points

Young male drivers more likely than females to have penalty points. 

Young men are more likely to have penalty points on their license, data released by the DVLA has revealed. The number of young males aged between 17 to 20 with six points on their license has reached 30,850, compared with 9,758 young female drivers. Understandably, the Institute of Advanced Motorists, a charity that seeks to raise standards for driver and rider training, is calling for young drivers to be given more support.

There’s more bad news for the boys too. The number of 17-year-old guys that already have six points on their licence is 358, while there are no 17-year-old females carrying more than three points in total.

Young drivers only account for 2.5 million of the 30 million drivers with full licences on UK roads. In addition, they account for around 5 per cent of the miles driven in the UK every year. However, they are involved in more road collisions each year than any other demographic.

In the Department of Transport’s annual review of reported road accidents, a fifth of people killed or seriously injured in the UK in 2012 were involved in incidents related to young drivers.

Simon Best, IAM Chief Executive, 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 reportedly working on a green paper, which aims to adjust the way young drivers are taught and the change their driving habits to limit the possibility of frequent accidents. Suggestions to date involve applying curfews and banning young drivers from carrying passengers.