A new report by the RAC has found that almost 12% of people hurt or killed in car collisions involved a driver aged between 17 and 19.
Having looked at police data regarding crashed over the four years up to 2012, it was found that the 12% of crashes involved just the 1.5% of the driving population which is those aged 17 to 19.
An average of 188,368 people was injured each year in car accidents and 22,391 of those involved a 17 to 19 year old driver.
Philip Gomm, the Head of External Communications for the RAC said: “we want to respect young people’s freedoms we want to keep them safe for the whole of their driving lives but that possibly involves some limited restrictions when they first pass their test because that’s the riskiest time for any driver.”
The RAC want a new, graduated license scheme that they predict will help to save 4,500 people getting hurt each year. The graduated license system would restrict what and when young people are allowed to drive.
These restrictions are similar to a lot of black box insurance deals that were initially targeted at young drivers. By restricting the times that they can drive, and giving them a curfew, such as 11pm, the rates of car accidents should be reduced.
The government have postponed plans to introduce the system however.
These figures are shocking though, and call for something to be done about the high accident rate. It is these kinds of figures that boost the insurance of young people so high.
However, the government claim they do not want to impose on young drivers’ freedoms. Furthermore, young people would find it a lot more difficult to get jobs if they can’t drive, or have restricted driving times, potentially lending to the high unemployment rates.