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Welsh parents' driving scares the kids
publication date: Jul 2, 2011
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author/source: Robin Roberts
Nearly two-thirds of children admit their parents are
aggressive drivers and one in eight say are scared or embarrassed by mum
and dad's driving.
A survey by Continental Tyres, asked kids to report what they
witnessed and to say how they felt about their parents driving - and the
results might make mum and dad think twice about their behaviour. | When 1,000 children between the ages of four and 16 were
polled, three-quarters said their parents shout at other road users and
one in five reported that their ‘responsible adult' used a mobile phone
while driving despite this being banned in December 2003.
The back-seat view revealed that 40 per cent of youngsters get upset
when mum or dad loses it behind the wheel and one in three gets
embarrassed.
The poor driving skills prompt 22 per cent of children to slump down in
their seat to try to hide and one in five have told their elders to
improve their driving, despite 14 per cent saying they were too scared
to tell their parents that they were unimpressed.
Tim Bailey, safety expert for Continental Tyres said, "There are some
serious failings highlighted here revealing poor driving practices and
lack of courtesy by millions of motorists.
| | Younger couples are the most likely to disagree over who is going to drive, according to another study.
Research carried out by the trade specialist ContractHireAndLeasing.com has revealed that 29
per cent, or almost 1 in 3, people aged between 18 and 24 admit to
arguing with their spouse over driving duties.
In fact, a staggering 16
per cent confirm that they bicker over driving every time they travel
together!
It also seems that the older you are, the less quarrelsome you become
though, as over 90 per cent of those over the age 55 said they never
disagreed over driving duties.
Across all age groups though, 84 per cent said they never argued with
their partner over who was going to drive, proving that on the whole,
we're a nation of agreeable sorts.
Oddly, women were more likely to report that they argued with their
partner (perhaps the men just aren't listening?!) with 19 per cent of
women, compared to 13 per cent of men, saying that they argued with
their partner at least monthly over driving duties. | "What compounds that situation is the impact it has on the children.
Nearly one in ten said they had gripped the seat in response to the
speed of their parents driving.
"The assumption might have been that driving with a child in the car
would prompt greater care and attention, but this evidence suggests not,
and poor driving habits are potentially being ingrained in future
motorists."
In the study 23 per cent of the children said that they had been in an
accident with either mum or dad driving and 80 per cent said dad is more
likely to speed. | | | |
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