Drivers Education and the Battle of the Sexes

SWERVE Driving School offers New Driver Training and Collision Avoidance programs for both teens and

adults at a variety of Eastside and Seattle Driving School locations throughout the Puget Sound Washington area.

Which sex is the better driver and why?

We've gathered the facts around driving performance and attitudes including:

• Numbers killed in auto crashes by gender
• Crash rates per driver age and gender
• Impact of alcohol
• Insurance costs
• Traffic offenses
• Do men or women think they're better drivers?

Violations Ratio 

Men scored higher than women:

• Reckless driving, 3.41 to 1
• DUI, 3.09 to 1
• Seat belt violation, 3.08 to 1
• Speeding, 1.75 to 1
• Failure to yield, 1.54 to 1
• Signal Violation, 1.53 to 1

Fatal passenger vehicle crash involvements

Per miles traveled, men were involved in fatal crashes at a rate of 2.5, compared to women at 1.7

Driving under the influence (DUI)

Males drive drunk more often than females, with .61% male drivers receiving a DUI compared to .16% female.

Offenses

Women versus Men

• 30% of women have driven drunk compared to 55% of men
• 38% of women have rudely gestured other drivers compared to 47% of men
• 77% of women have crashed their vehicle compared to 84% of men
• 40% of women have been distracted by billboards while driving compared to 51% of men
• 36% of women have admitted to verbally abusing another driver compared to 46% of men
• 15% of women have used their phone without a hands free accessory compared to 22% of men

What does the other sex think?

84% of women think gender does not play a role in driving skill, while 8% believe women are better drivers.  Conversely, 57% of men think gender does not play a role in driving skill, while 40% believe men are better drivers

Are Men or women better drivers?

Our sources conclude that women are better drivers than men for the following reasons:

• Males break more traffic laws and drive more dangerously than women
• Males are at least 50% more likely to be cited for reckless driving, seat belt violations, speeding, failure to yield and stop sign violations
• Males cause more accidents and expensive damage
• Males drive drunk more often than females
• Males have much higher numbers of car crashes than females
• Males commit more offenses than women
• Males pay higher insurance premiums
• Females have fewer traffic violations