Battle
of the sexes behind the wheel revs up: who makes the better driver?
http://www.couriermail.com.au/lifestyle/battle-of-the-sexes-behind-the-wheel-revs-up-who-makes-the-better-driver/story-fniho6st-1226690458201
THE battle of the sexes behind the wheel is revving up.
Exclusive insurance data has shown men are making fewer
accident claims, mounting a case to be declared the better drivers.
Unfortunately for them when they do make a claim it's
usually for far more expensive damage.
Although women do make more claims (54.6 per cent compared
to 45.4 per cent) they are usually only for minor bingles.
The figures from Budget Direct, which has an estimated
600,000 policy holders Australia-wide, suggest most men get progressively
better drivers as they get older. By the age of 30, women are making more
claims than men.
"When Budget Direct took a look at data for the past
five years we found that something interesting happened around the age of 25
between men and women," explained general manager Antony Dunstan.
"At that age the rate of vehicle incidents for men
drops, and its women in the older age groups who report a higher rate of
incidents with their cars."
Safe Drive Training expert Joel Nielsen said there are
clearly evident innate differences between male and female drivers.
"In advanced driving classes, when a woman loses
control and panics the natural response is to hit the brakes. This limits the
amount of damage to the vehicle," he said.
Men are the opposite.
"Men fight the car and think they can recover the
vehicle. We often say that the only time men realise they are in trouble is
when the tree enters their mind," he said.
Tony Rowe, a training consultant with NRMA Safer Driving,
sees similar differences when training younger drivers.
"Women tend to have less confidence in making
decisions, especially with lane changing, merging and parking," he said.
"But they tend to read the situation better. Men just assume 'it'll be
fine' and go barging through."
The battle between the states is also answered in the
insurance data.
Based on the value of claims, the ACT is home to the worst
male drivers while South Australia
men rank as the nation's best.
For women, the number of claims suggest they are at their
worst in SA and their best in Tasmania.
Do you agree with these findings? Tell us below.
Across the country, the data suggests the worst female
drivers are aged between 17 and 20, live in South Australia and drive a coupe on a
Friday.
The worst male drivers are aged between 17 and 20, in the
ACT and drive a ute on a Sunday.
And all of these factors contribute to the costs we pay for
car insurance.
"There are many factors that go into determining price.
Key issues include things like, how likely is it that the individual might make
a claim, the cost of repairing their type of car, and more," said Mr
Dunstan.