Welsh drivers pick up most speeding tickets

Welsh drivers are among the fastest on the road, picking up more speeding tickets than anyone else in the country, according to research. A poll of 2,000 UK motorists found 45 per cent of those in Wales have been ticketed for driving over the speed limit – with Scottish drivers the most cautious behind the wheel. But you’re most likely to get into a road accident in Northern Ireland, with three in five drivers having been involved in an incident at some point.

Once again, the Scots found themselves on the safer side, with under half of Scottish drivers having been in a crash. James Buttrick from Vantage Leasing, which commissioned the study, said: “Our survey found the majority of drivers are not perhaps quite as safe as they thought they were.

“When it comes to road safety, there’s only so much you can do – your overall safety can easily be affected by other drivers.

“And if your car is written off after an accident – or something else happens that’s not your fault – it can really affect your insurance premiums, as well.”

Most likely to...

…RECEIVE A SPEEDING TICKET

1. Wales
2. East Midlands
3. London
4. North West
5. West Midlands

…RECEIVE A PARKING TICKET

1. North East
2. Northern Ireland
3. London
4. North West
5. Wales

…BUMP YOUR BUMPER

1. London
2. East Midlands
3. West Midlands
4. South West
5. South East

…BE IN A ROAD ACCIDENT

1. Northern Ireland
2. East Midlands
3. South East
4. Wales
5. East Anglia

The South West was found to be the region with the most disqualified drivers, with 17 per cent facing a ban at some point in their lives.

And Londoners are more likely than anyone else to pick up a parking ticket – with six in 10 drivers from the capital returning to their vehicles to find a note on their windshield containing a fine.

The cramped streets of London are also where drivers are most likely to ding their bumper against another car while trying to park.

In the last five years, Londoners have made this mistake four times – twice as many as their nearest fender-bending competition in the East Midlands.

Over their driving career, the average Brit has picked up a total of 4 points on their licence – although those from the East Midlands have one fewer point than the country’s average.

Driving licence points are overwhelmingly most likely to be picked up for speeding, with 83 per cent of points accumulated this way.

This was followed by disobeying traffic light signals, which account for just under 10 per cent of violations.

It also emerged nearly half of the driving population have experienced road rage while behind the wheel, with six in 10 Northern Irish drivers succumbing to a disagreement with another motorist.

In contrast, only two in five East Midlands drivers admit to having a short fuse when they’re trying to get from A to B.

James Buttrick added: “What we found from our research is that everyone could do with paying a little more attention to their safety on the roads.

“A worrying third of the population don’t think they could definitively call themselves a safe driver, which should be everyone’s key priority when they get behind the wheel.

“And one in five of our respondents admit they’ve had passengers comment on poor driving while giving them a lift.

“From our perspective, safe driving is good driving – no matter what part of the country you live in.”