3,200 of UK drivers disqualified in first year of driving, study reveals

Approximately 3,200 of newly-passed UK drivers are disqualified in their first year of driving, an ALA study has revealed.

Of the 3,200 disqualified drivers, 28% were between the ages of 19 and 21, and 25% were between the ages of 22 and 25.

The study of 1,000 UK motorists, conducted by ALA found the most common age for disqualification was between 18 and 19, with 443 being 18 and 379 being 19.

When drivers were asked if they had a road accident in their first 12 months, 22% responded yes.

Based on pass rate data in the UK, 815,168 people passed their driving test between April 2016 and March 2017.

This equates to an estimated 176,076 new drivers who would have been involved in a driving incident of some sort in this timeframe.

ALA’s managing director Simon England said:  “We were surprised to find that one in five new drivers are involved in at least one accident within the first 12 months, suggesting that experience really does count when you are out on the road.” 

The data was also broken down to city level, revealing that the top three cities reporting the highest number of accidents involving new drivers were Coventry, Chelmsford, and Aberdeen.

New drivers from Aberystwyth, Gloucester, Southampton and Swansea however were involved in the fewest.

ALA also submitted a Freedom of Information (FOI) request to find out how many drivers were disqualified or received points on their licence within 12 months of passing their driving test.

The results found that 3,194 new drivers were disqualified, and 18,038 received points on their licence. The younger drivers caused the majority of these offences, with 71% aged 17-25.

For the period of 2016/2017 in Leeds, 29 new drivers were disqualified, equating to 1.6% of people that passed their driving test in that area – almost four times the national average.

It combined the figures from the FOI request to find the city that highest number of convicted new drivers, and then calculated the percentage versus UK pass rate figures in 2016/2017 in these areas.

Whilst drivers in Coventry or Chelmsford are involved in the largest number of accidents, it appears those in Leeds are committing the most driving offences.