The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has joined with a group of experts to call for more to be done in reducing the incidence of young drivers crashing.
Otto Thoresen, director general of ABI, teamed up with chief constable Suzette Davenport, Julie Townsend of Brake, Dr Sarah Jones of the Environmental Health Protection Department at Cardiff University and a number of other motoring specialists to write a letter to the Daily Telegraph outlining the need for change.
“Deaths and injuries involving young drivers can be prevented by reforming how they learn to drive and establish themselves as safe drivers … successive governments have failed to take decisive action to stop this,” an extract read.
The group said they commended the government for wanting to improve young motorists’ safety, but said a “genuine and open” public debate is needed to reduce the number of deaths seen annually in the UK.
Statistics from the experts also revealed that around 40 per cent of 17-year-old males have accidents in their first six months of driving and 5,419 people are killed or seriously injured in collisions involving young drivers every year.