Young drivers are failing to make the most of developments in vehicle safety technology, instead prioritising “infotainment” systems which only serve to distract them, according to a road safety charity.
Brake says that a study it carried out, which revealed that less than half of drivers see safety as one of their three most important considerations when buying a new car, is evidence that motorists have their priorities wrong.
The research shows how young drivers are especially blasé about their vehicle’s safety features, with only 37% of the 17 to 24-year-olds questioned saying safety was top of their mind when looking for a new car.
Infotainment systems or in-car entertainment (ICE), meanwhile, were stated as one of the most important features in choosing a vehicle by one in six (17%) of the young driver age group.
However, Brake says it goes without saying that these all-in-one systems will ultimately prove a distraction, and while a mobile phone can be tucked out of sight, an in-built system cannot.
Brake goes on to quote research from the US’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which shows how attempting to multi-task on the road can make a driver two or three times more likely to be involved in an accident.
Julie Townsend, deputy chief executive, Brake, said that falling accident rates in recent decades is largely thanks to improvements in vehicle safety technology – but the number of accidents will only continue to decrease if drivers take advantage of the advances as much as possible.
She added, however, that “any vehicle is ultimately only ever as safe as the person driving it”, urging motorists to display considerate driving.
Source: Brake
Print 
PDF
