One in five drivers crash within a year of passing their test in the UK
In a bid to cut down the number of car crashes, the United Kingdom government is soon planning to ban young drivers from giving a lift to their friends in their vehicles, the Independent reported. As part of the suggested restrictions, new drivers under the age of 25 would not be able to take any young passengers in the car for the first 6 months to a year of driving.
The proposal will be considered by Richard Holden, the roads minister, at a meeting on May 16 and might be introduced as part of a “graduated driving licence” scheme. The scheme could be implemented via the Road Traffic (New Drivers) Act, which imposes a probation period on new drivers who get their licence revoked if they get six penalty points within two years of passing.
It comes following a campaign by a woman whose 18-year-old daughter was killed in a car crash after taking a lift with a friend who had passed her test four months earlier. The driver, 18, was also tragically killed. Another teenager in the back seat survived the crash with serious injuries.
Speaking about her campaign, 52-year-Sharron Huddleston told the Sunday Times, “It has left a huge, gaping hole in our family. Every Christmas, every birthday, it is just devastating. There is nothing I can do to bring Caitlin back but I am determined, in her memory, to ensure that no other family goes through the pain and agony that we go through every day.”
She is also scheduled to meet the roads minister next month regarding her campaign. Additionally, Radd Seiger, a crisis consultant who secured justice for the family of 19-year-old Harry Dunn, will also attend the meeting.
According to road safety charity Brake, one in five drivers crash within a year of passing their test. It also added that new drivers carrying passengers of a similar age are four times as likely to die in a crash than those driving alone. Young drivers make up only six per cent of total licence holders in the UK but they account for over one in five fatal and serious crashes.
Other countries like Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Sweden, and some US states also have introduced similar schemes for people who have only recently passed their test.