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| Driving not a female forte: poll |
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| jaihoon |
| 08/03/03 at 00:23:01 |
| Driving not a female forte: poll By Debasree S. khaleejtimes.com 2 August 2003 DUBAI - Do women make better drivers than men? Die-hard feminists and those who fancy themselves as good drivers are in for a disappointment. An online poll on the Khaleej Times web site indicated last week that an overwhelming percentage of the voters did not consider driving a female forte. Among the votes that were polled, 57.17 per cent agreed that women were careless and panicky on the road while 38.69 per cent considered women as more disciplined drivers. Another 4.5 per cent did not have an opinion. The poll also threw up interesting observations made by male drivers about their female counterparts while women drivers pitched in with comments, defending their right to drive on UAE's roads. "Women are initially cautious but once they have committed a mistake like taking a wrong turn, they panic immediately and cause inconvenience to the other drivers, sometimes triggering off a series of accidents on Maktoum Bridge or Garhoud during the early rush hours," went a particular observation while another one, evidently by a female, contended that women are more careful on the road. "The only mistake that they usually make is that they assume that everyone else is equally cautious while driving. Overall, an educated woman is a better driver than her female counterparts." The issue proved to be further contentious with some insisting that women were so beauty-conscious that they were constantly adjusting the rear-view window to check out their appearance instead of checking the vehicle from behind, creating a nuisance on the roads while women alleged that men were so pre-occupied with their problems at work and home that they do not necessarily concentrate on their driving. A study conducted by Dr Mohammed Murad Abdulla, Director of the Decision-Making Support Centre at Dubai Police, while analysing the role women play in road accidents in the UAE and in the Gulf, concluded that UAE conformed to the constant increase in the number of accidents caused by women in developing countries. "Although the percentage of accidents caused by women are relatively small when compared to the total number of accidents, the numbers are steadily on the rise," the study indicated, pointing to the 7.43 per cent accidents caused by women on UAE roads in 2002. The study also revealed that 16.25 per cent of the accidents caused by women were due to speeding, 19.38 per cent were caused by not taking into consideration other road users, 15.63 per cent were caused by reckless driving, 11.88 per cent were caused by not keeping a safe distance from other vehicles, 9.38 per cent were caused by jumping signals while 8.13 per cent were caused due to the lack of cautiousness and by not checking if the road is clear before entering it. The study also attributed a large number of social factors like increasing urbanisation and social changes that were being reflected in the changing driving patterns among women, driving them to accidents. Recent social changes have granted a greater degree of freedom to women and ensured their participation in the workforce in greater numbers. "The financial and social responsibilities that women shoulder these days have made them more daring and competitive that has once again resulted in a change in their driving styles," the study noted. Another interesting point thrown up by the study was that there was an increasing trend among women to drive 4WD in an effort to overcome their physical weakness when compared to women. The psychological moodiness of women have been proved by the study as having a big impact on their inert feelings and condition, pointing to other factors as well like tendency to imitate male behaviour by driving at a higher speed and dangerously passing other vehicles, using the phone while driving and putting on very loud music that lead to the increasing traffic accidents caused by women. According to the study, the highest number of accidents committed by women are those that involve crashing, that can be attributed to a higher level of agitation. Women are not necessarily calm and composed in crisis situations and do not have strong nerves to tackle the aftermath of an accident, both minor and major, the study said. However women, with their natural sensitivity, have rarely been found to cause accidents by running over stray animals on the roads. |
| Re: Driving not a female forte: poll |
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| Kathy |
| 08/03/03 at 00:45:09 |
| Women 'better drivers than men' Women are better drivers than men, according to a new report by road safety organisation Brake. The survey showed women take more care and are less aggressive behind the wheel. Men are also much more likely to take risks. The survey of 1,000 people was done as part of Road Safety Week, which is starting a week on Monday. It revealed two thirds of men admitted to speeding on country roads, compared to just half of women. While 32% of women drivers admitted to speeding in urban areas, 52% of male drivers did the same. Men are also more likely to take risks in other motoring situations, such as driving to work in the morning after a night's drinking, driving while on drugs and overtaking on blind spots. Drivers in general believed about one in 2,000 deaths are caused on the roads - but the real figure is one in 200. "By their own admission men take the sort of risks that contribute to deaths on the road," said Mary Williams, director of Brake. "Women have been laughed at in the past for making mistakes, such as stalling at junctions, but there's a difference between that and taking risks that contribute to accidents." Brake is a voluntary road safety organisation funded by government departments and private contributors. [code]According to the Goodyear Safety Survey: Women are safer drivers - just ask men. Thanks to the Goodyear Safety Survey, jokes about female drivers may soon fizzle out, even among men. When asked which gender are the safer drivers, 50% of Canadians say females, while only 29% say males and 18% are unsure. Interestingly, 40% of men admit that females are the better drivers, but only 20% of females return the compliment. Provincially, Quebecers are the most complimentary to females behind the wheel with 70% saying they are the safer-driving gender. Atlantic Canadians are only half as likely to commend women - only 36% said females are safer drivers. Albertans and Atlantic Canadians are the most charitable to male drivers, with 39% and 38% (respectively) of people in those provinces siding with men. [/code] Insurance for women drivers may rise Jun 21 2003 by Jenny Rees, The Western Mail WOMEN drivers could lose their cheaper car insurance because of European rules to make men equal. In the eyes of insurance companies women are viewed as better drivers and so enjoy a reduced rate. However, this may all soon change if moves from the EU attempting to pass legislation banning gender discrimination are approved. Under a new proposed "one-price" policy, the UK's 15 million women drivers would be required to pay premiums equal to those for men, even though they cause fewer serious accidents and are much less of a cost to insurance companies. Pricing policies would be determined by individual's previous convictions, claims and information about the car. A spokesman for the Association of British Insurers confirmed yesterday that premiums for women were likely to rise in the event of such EU legislation. "It is early days because no such proposal has emerged yet. It's something we understand the European Commission is thinking about and maybe planning on issuing a draft proposal," said the spokesman. "If there was an imposition of an artificial equality then women drivers universally would be required to pay more." However in a recent independent survey from leading motor insurance broker InsureYourMotor.com, it was revealed that men commit a massive 89% of all road traffic offences. Findings indicated that women have more claims on their insurance policies but for smaller accidents such as scrapes and prangs. It is facts and figures such as these that have convinced insurance companies that women are safer drivers than men and thus they are rewarded with lower insurance premiums. David Harlow, MD of GirlMotor.com, said, "Women drivers have lower premiums for a good reason. "They are quite simply a lower risk than men; they drive shorter distances, their mileages are lower and they usually drive much slower than men. "If this new legislation is passed it will have a major effect on the entire insurance industry as other factors such as age, occupation and home postcode could also be excluded from the pricing process. "To accuse car insurance companies of gender dis-crimination is ridiculous as gender is a factor in risk assessment for all forms of insurance." Andrew Briscoe, managing director of AA Insurance Services, said research by The AA Foundation had consistently shown that young male drivers represent the highest risk on UK roads and that they were six times more likely to be killed behind the wheel than their parents. And he added that the wider implications of this could be far-reaching, with other factors such as age, occupation and even postcode being excluded from the pricing process. "The key issue is whether or not using gender as part of the pricing process is perceived as discrimination under the wording of the directive. "It is widely considered acceptable for one person to pay more for a service or product if there is sound, justifiable evidence to show that they represent a higher risk as a direct result of their age, gender or disability. "In the case of car insurance, this allows underwriters to price on a fair basis by tailoring premiums to customers' own circumstances. "If insurers were forced to comply, they would have to increase premiums for many women, who would be penalised by subsidising the premiums for more risky, male drivers by the very law designed to help them." |
| 08/03/03 at 00:49:30 |
| Kathy |
| Re: Driving not a female forte: poll |
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| faisalsb |
| 08/03/03 at 01:50:39 |
| [slm] :) I think it's an interesting debate I agree with both of the surveys since both of them are true. Women do make less accidents and pay less insurance because usually they are not part of the accident but in fact source of it. Assume woman has taken wrong turn and reached in middle of the road when she realised her mistake. She immediately stopped and started thinking either now she should move forward which will make her half mistake complete or put her car in reverse gear and undo her mistake. Mean while she makes her mind four or five cars around her had already met their destination and her way was clear either move forward or backward. So she moved away even without having a single scratch on her car. |
| Re: Driving not a female forte: poll |
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| wired-up |
| 08/03/03 at 03:46:03 |
| Assalamualaikum Polls aside ...I soooooooooo want to learn to drive!!!I think sisters who drive well are so mega -kewl! 8) I am so scared to drive .If you guys see some of the cars involved in accidents over here you'll be like ..."This was a car? :("Nufin left but mangled metal. whether man or woman: May Allah (swt) keep us safe from accidents and harm .Ameen. Wassalaam Ps: I used to joke with my sister when she was learning to drive that it was my dream we drive on highways ,windows rolled down ,Hee-jabs fluttering in the wind,ice-cream in hand :).Now that she is a good driver Mashallah she forgot allabout me and my dream ::) |
| Re: Driving not a female forte: poll |
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| Halima |
| 08/03/03 at 09:50:57 |
| Killer drivers on Kenyan roads are MEN! More people die on Kenyan roads daily than of HIV/Aids which is one of the biggest killers. At least 10 people perish everyday on the road in public service vehicles countrywide and all the drivers are MEN! |
| Re: Driving not a female forte: poll |
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| Nomi |
| 08/03/03 at 17:47:51 |
| [slm] Okay, Two of my aunts were the first in the family to learn driving. The younger one once hit a poor old man who alhamdolillah survived. The other one was once driving, "we" were with her, she suddenly realized that she had to turn and applied brakes so hard that the car came to a halt and the cars behind crashed into us. Our car wasn't damaged all that much but the two behind us were :o and somehow we managed to convince them that it wasn't our fault ::) Once me was watching a car race on some sport channel and the commentaters were laughing weirdly, i dint find out whats going on except that the cars were having a "try run". One of the commentater said "i can even read the maker's name on the tyres"... after few seconds i realized that the race was actually ON but the drivers were all ladies !! |
| 08/03/03 at 17:51:03 |
| Nomi |
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