Young Drivers Shouldn’t Carry Young Passengers, Motoring Organisation Says

What was the first thing you did after passing your driving test? If you’re anything like us, it probably involved heading straight to pick your mates up and make a beeline for the nearest motorway and/or McDonald’s drive-through. If the AA gets its way though, that could be a thing of the past.

It’s not that the UK-based motoring association wants to bring an end to fast food, rather, it’s calling for the introduction of graduated driving licencing (GDL).

GDL is a type of licencing adopted in various guises by many other countries, including some US states, Canada and Australia, limiting some freedoms for new drivers as they clock in their first few years on the road.

If the AA has its way, the headline change would see drivers under 21 unable to carry ‘peer-age’ passengers within the first six months of passing their test albeit with exemptions in place for parents or carers.

On top of that, it also believes new drivers should receive six penalty points if caught not wearing a seatbelt, which would effectively mean they lose their licence. The association has also called for a ‘G’ plate to be required for six months from passing for anyone under 21.

What would the effect of those changes be? Well, according to the AA, up to 58 lives a year could be saved. Its own research claims 20 per cent of fatalities in young driver crashes are passengers, and that 72 per cent of its members back some form of GDL.

Jakob Pfaudler, CEO of The AA, said: “Graduated Driver Licensing has been proven in other countries to significantly reduce road deaths and serious injuries.

“Figures show 290 people were killed in young driver crashes last year with more than 4,669 seriously injured. Not only is this a tragic waste of life, but it contributes to the burden of high insurance premiums for young drivers. These premiums should fall when there is evidence of a reduction in young drivers and passengers killed and seriously injured.”

There has been no indication if the UK plans to implement a form of GDL, but Pfaudler has written to Transport Secretary Louise Haigh with the association’s calls. Time will tell if that’s taken seriously.