Study: Women are the safest drivers

The question of which gender is a safer driver often stirs up a lot of debate, with women typically stereotyped as being prone to car accidents. While neither will admit that the opposite sex are better drivers, a study revealed unexpected results.

According to Alexander Forbes Insurance vehicle data for male and female drivers, men have a higher incidence of total accidental losses at most ages with younger ages being prevalent.

Colin Mchunu, Senior Manager at Alexander Forbes Insurance, speculates this could be due to distractions associated with driving, while young children are in the vehicle, or teenagers learning to drive in their mother’s vehicle and being involved in minor accidents.

“Women claim for smaller amounts than men in general, as a result of their lower frequency of total losses,” he said.

Driving high-performance or high-powered vehicles seems to be more prevalent among men than women.

“This could explain why women are also more likely to drive vehicles within the lower-sum insured bands.”

Women and men in general drive hatchbacks, SUVs and sedans most commonly, but the single- and double-cab category is, rather stereotypically, mainly male territory.

“This may indicate that men often need more durable vehicles than women for their daily usage purposes – perhaps for work,” Mchunu said.