My son has crashed his car.

nej

I crashed my first car at 18 (or maybe 19, can't remember now). I wasn't driving like an idiot (wasn't even speeding), but I simply couldn't judge the road conditions. It was rainy and mud was on the road and I didn't have the experience.

However, the accident taught me a good lesson and made me more wary of conditions. I'm sure it'll teach him one, too.

nickmack

I think it's about time the age for driving was raised. 18 would be a slight improvement, 21 would be much better.

It would firstly decrease the number of accidents. I'm not one for relying too heavily on statistics but time and time again it is shown that young drivers are more likely to write off a car in their first year of driving, cause death by dangerous driving or get convicted of driving without insurance.

Secondly, it should reduce the number of vehicles on the road, which is another major problem.

Admittedly it is young men that seem to have more problems than women, but it would be difficult to have one age for male drivers and one for female.

alias7

tomstickland wrote:

Sorry to hear the news. However, not everyone crashes within the first year of passing their test.

True. I've been driving 8 months now and I've only ran one person over.

tomstickland

If you raise the age you might make a small difference, but people will still be inexperienced when they start driving n years later.

nickmack

tomstickland wrote:

If you raise the age you might make a small difference, but people will still be inexperienced when they start driving n years later.

But also more mature/less likely to show off to their mates

nemo183

alias7 wrote:

True. I've been driving 8 months now and I've only ran one person over.

Yes, that's really funny.......

tomstickland

But also more mature/less likely to show off to their mates

How much do you know about men?

iceicebaby

men ... more mature ??? erm ???

Im speechless?

nemo183

nickmack wrote:

I think it's about time the age for driving was raised. 18 would be a slight improvement, 21 would be much better.

Very true. On the other hand, if the government were really serious about reducing accidents and improving driving skills, they would enforce a mini driving test for us all, every five or ten years. When I passed my test, back in 1980, it was based on a 1980 car and the 1980 highway code.

Since then, it hardly needs saying that both have changed.

Whilst I agree it is almost impossible for any party to enforce the above, let me ask all just how the following 2 situations should be addressed:

1) You are driving on a motorway, on the inside lane, at between 65-70 mph. You observe cars traveling in the third lane at between 75-90 mph, often with a gap of under 20m between them. Why?

2) You arrive at a mini roundabout at a similar time to cars arriving at other points of the same roundabout. Since time began, the highway code has clearly stated that you must give way to traffic coming from your right. And yet, there now seems to be a new rule - you must give way to the driver who is not only the most aggressive, but driving the biggest car. Why?

Please forgive me, but I am not being a pedant about these issues. I've a current licence that allows me to drive anything on 2 or 4 wheels. I've also (sometime in the past!) held an international racing car licence. I am not a member of the IAM or any such club.

It just seems to me that not only is the general standard of driving going downhill, but also basic knowledge of even the highway code. And worse still, I feel that on average, it's actually drivers over 40 that are making it so, with their complancy and ignorance both of the current highway code, and the changes in technique that modern cars allow. Whilst their increased levels of roadcraft and general experience should mean the opposite.

PurpleDuck

nemo183 wrote:

2) You arrive at a mini roundabout at a similar time to cars arriving at other points of the same roundabout. Since time began, the highway code has clearly stated that you must give way to traffic coming from your right. And yet, there now seems to be a new rule - you must give way to the driver who is not only the most aggressive, but driving the biggest car. Why?

QUOTE]

True - unless you are my mother who drives straight accross mini roundabouts without stopping as if they are not there at all :eek:


I think if you pass a test in rural area you should have extra lessions in town/city driving. Driving round here is nothing like driving in a city or on a motorway :eek: