Three in four don’t believe they would pass their driving test again

Britons pick up so many bad habits that the majority believe they would not pass their driving test again, if they had to re-take it, according to new research; as many confess to driving single-handedly and using gadgets.

The team at www.VoucherCodesPro.co.uk conducted the research as part of an ongoing study into British attitudes and experiences. 2,481 Britons aged 18 and over, all of whom stated that they have a full-driving license and have been driving for a minimum of 12 months, were quizzed about their driving habits and attitudes.

Initially all respondents were asked ‘Do you think that you would pass your driving test again if you were to take it tomorrow?’ to which 74 per cent of respondents confessed that they didn’t think that they would pass. When these respondents were asked why they believed they would fail, almost all respondents (92 per cent) admitted that they’ve picked up bad habits since passing their driving test.

Wanting to delve a little deeper, all respondents were asked what bad habits they had picked up whilst driving. When provided with a list of possible responses and told to select all that applied, the top five most commonly adopted bad driving habits were revealed:

1. Driving with one hand on the steering wheel – 66 per cent
2. Using gadgets whilst driving (i.e. mobile phone, sat nav etc.) – 59 per cent
3. Eating and drinking whilst driving – 55 per cent
4. Running amber/red traffic lights – 52 per cent
5. Lack of observation – 50 per cent

Further to these, 48 per cent stated that they ‘speed without realising it’, while 10 per cent stated that they felt they would fail due to ‘general dangerous driving’.

All respondents who stated that they eat and drink behind the wheel were asked when they were most likely to chomp on whilst driving, to which ‘takeaways’ (28 per cent), ‘snacks, i.e. crisps and sweets’ (25 per cent) and ‘sandwiches’ (21 per cent) were revealed as the food options of choice; although one in twenty (5 per cent) stated that they liked to eat ‘full hot meals’ behind the wheel. Similarly, when asked what types of drinks they preferred to drink, ‘cans of fizzy pop’ (41 per cent) and ‘energy drinks e.g. coffee, red bull etc.’ (24 per cent) were the most popular.

George Charles, spokesperson for www.VoucherCodesPro.co.uk, made the following comments: “Whilst things like driving one-handed and eating and drinking behind the wheel aren’t illegal, if you’re spotted by the police and they feel you’re not in full control of your vehicle, driving carelessly, you can still get into trouble. It’s common sense to pull over when tired, so it should also be common sense to pull over to eat where it’s safe to do so. Trying to do this whilst driving can diminish your concentration on the road, and it only takes a split second for something to go wrong.”