Sharron’s daughter Caitlin was killed in a crash involving a newly qualified driver. She is working with Brake to campaign for a safer driver licensing system.
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Why is Brake campaigning for progressive licensing for young and newly qualified drivers?
In 2022, 4,935 people were killed or seriously injured from a crash involving a young driver [1]. A progressive licensing system with minimum periods for learning, enhanced testing and training, and measures to reduce the risks associated with carrying peer-age passengers and driving at night, could reduce the number of deaths and injuries involving young drivers by 20–40%.
- Young drivers aged 17–24 are at greater risk than other drivers because of age and inexperience.
- 1 in 5 drivers crash within a year of passing their test.
- Typical brain development means young drivers are often more likely to take risks and are less able to regulate their impulses or understand the consequences of their decisions.
- A progressive licensing system – which introduces elements such as a minimum learning period and a restriction on driving at night – has proved successful in reducing road deaths and injuries of young drivers in other countries [2].
- A similar system in New Zealand, which also reduced the number of similar-aged passengers a newly licensed driver can carry, led to a 23% reduction in car crash injuries for 15–19-year-olds, and a 12% reduction for 20–24-year-olds [3,4].
- There is good evidence that additional hazard perception training is another effective way to improve driver safety [5,6].
In May 2023, Brake surveyed 2,010 drivers to determine their views on driver testing and education.
Click here to read the Driver testing and education survey report
