Sue Longthorn: Keep your distance and drive down accidents

Published on Thursday 16 July 2009 09:54

AROUND one in four road accidents involves one motorist hitting another in the rear, in fact rear-end shunts and bumps are by far the most common type of accident on UK roads. While the number of every other type of accident has been falling each year, the number of rear-end accidents has stubbornly remained the same.

So why is this? Of course we can all get distracted while driving; keeping the kids quiet, changing the radio, other road users. But how many of us have nearly bumped the car in front because our mind has drifted off or because an attractive person has walked by? Good driving takes concentration and when we're sat in slow-moving traffic it's easy to let that slip.

At higher speeds, rear-end accidents can be more serious and I believe the main reason these types of accidents are so common is down to how many of us drive today. Too many motorists don't leave enough space between themselves and the car in front, they drive aggressively and they tailgate.

In a recent survey by Admiral of more than 3,000 motorists, tailgating was named as the most annoying bad habit of other motorists. If you drive too close to the car in front and that car has to brake for any reason, you could end up in the back of them. We all had to learn our stopping distances for our driving test, but how many of us apply them to our driving? The stopping distance at just 40mph is nine car lengths!

We estimate the cost to the insurance industry of these accidents is over 500 million a year. This isn't just because of car repairs, but also personal injury claims – around one in ten rear-end accidents causes whiplash.

If you do hit another motorist in the rear, the chances are you'll be found at fault for the accident, so you'll have to pay your excess and you could see your premiums rise as you lose your no claims bonus.

We all know driving can be stressful and frustrating, but next time you're in traffic, stop and think if you are too close to the car in front, and back off.

&#149 Sue Longthorn is managing director of Admiral