Britain’s best and worst drivers are identified

Britain’s best and worst drivers have been identified.

Wales-based insurer Gocompare looked at the convictions and occupations of six million people who asked for quotations and found 10% have had points on licences.

It ranked occupations by the proportion of motorists with a driving conviction within the past five years and broadly discovered that the worst offenders did a lot of driving and the best did less.

Gocompare.com’s research uncovered that risk isn’t a risky business as Britain’s best drivers were actuary professionals. Actuary professionals, who manage risk and uncertainty, had a conviction rate of just 3.3%, almost a third of the national average of 9.8%.

Parents may be relieved to know that, statistically, those working in a school are less likely to have a driving conviction than the rest of the UK. Nursery assistants and workers, playgroup assistants, teachers and teaching assistants all had a lower conviction rate than the national average. Head teachers, however, scored higher than the average at 9.8%.

Other occupations with a conviction rate lower than the national average included; driving instructors (4.9%), bus drivers (8.2%), police officers (8.8%) and professional footballers (9.4%).

According to the research, oil rig workers are the most reckless behind the wheel, with more than one in five (22.8%) having at least one conviction – that’s more than double the national average.

Those with the word ‘director’ in their job title were also more likely to break the law while on the road. Out of the top ten most rule-breaking motorists, four of them had the title ‘director’.

Other motorists with a higher conviction rate than the UK average included couriers (18%), chauffeurs (17.7%), barristers (15.9%), lorry drivers (13.8%), dentists (13%) and journalists (12.7%).

Matt Oliver, car insurance spokesperson at Gocompare.com said, “Driving laws exist to help keep motorists, cyclists and pedestrians safe on the road. In addition to putting yourself and others at risk, racking up multiple driving convictions can have a serious impact on your ability to get insurance in the future and can increase insurance costs considerably.

“In one example, we found having a conviction for speeding on a public road (SP30) could increase an average premium by up to £72, while having two of these could raise car insurance costs by as much as £118. This means that the total cost for getting two speeding convictions in a year could be as much as £238 when the two £60 fines and additional insurance costs are taken into consideration.