They may be notorious on the roads but ‘boy racers’ were almost half as likely to receive penalty points for speeding last year than their middle-aged counterparts, figures have shown.
Last year 43 per cent of drivers who received speeding-related points on their licence were aged 45 to 64 compared to 22 per cent aged 17 to 34, according to statistics from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency.
Drivers aged 17 to 24 were handed less than six per cent of all speeding points, the figures showed.
But ‘boy racers’ were disproportionately involved in accidents, with young male car drivers aged 17 to 24 some four times as likely to be killed or seriously injured compared to all drivers aged 25 or over.
Of collisions which involved at least one younger car driver, a third of those killed or seriously injured therein were 17 to 24-year-old males.
Dr Lisa Dorn, associate professor of driver behaviour at Cranfield University and founder of PsyDrive, a road safety consultancy, said: ‘Middle-aged drivers are more likely to speed because of a combination of time pressure, experience and perceived control. Years of experience can mean drivers become too confident in their driving skills leading them to believe they can safely manage higher speeds, especially on familiar roads.
‘Traffic psychology research shows that men are more drawn to sensation-seeking and risk and masculinity is often associated with confidence, control and assertiveness which can increase willingness to exceed speed limits.’
More than 1.2million drivers have active penalty points on their licence, an increase of 20 per cent in two years.
Despite the reputation of ‘boy racers’, four in ten drivers who received speeding-related points on their licence last year were middle-aged (file pic)
Some drivers can choose to take a speed awareness course, which costs around £90, to avoid the minimum penalty for speeding: three points and a £100 fine.
Drivers who accrue 12 penalty points within a three-year period face being disqualified from driving.
According to the Department for Transport, 43 per cent of speeding offences were on 30mph roads.
Drivers breaking the speed limit is most common from 6pm to 5am, when roads are quieter.
In recent years more drivers have been fined for driving at lower speeds as more 20mph zones have been introduced.
These zones accounted for 53 per cent of all speeding tickets issued in London last year, up from 39 per cent in 2024.
But young men were disproportionately involved in accidents on the roads (file pic)
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Psychiatrist faces road ban if he speeds at 24mph again after breaking ‘unjust’ limit
In April it was reported a psychiatrist had racked up nine points on his driving licence for speeding at just 24mph in London.
Dr Gary Duffield, 67, from north London, faced being banned from the roads if he was hit with one more speeding ticket.
When the consultant forensic psychiatrist was caught driving at 24mph in a 20mph zone last year, he was hit with a fine and attended a speed awareness course.
But after running up three further prosecutions in Hackney and Camden, for travelling twice at 24mph and once at 25mph, Dr Duffield faces losing his licence for six months if caught speeding again.
Chief Constable Jo Shiner, the National Police Chiefs’ Council leader on roads policing, told The Times: ‘Every road collision caused by speeding is avoidable and happens because someone has either taken the conscious decision to exceed the speed limit or has stopped concentrating.
‘Everyone has a personal responsibility when driving to ensure their speed is legal and appropriate and if everyone did that, many lives could be saved.’
