FORGET THE LUCK OF THE IRISH - LUCK COMES WITH AGE
13 March 2005 - Green Flag Motoring Assistance

For hundreds of years, people have believed in the fabled luck of the Irish, but a recent survey suggests that experienced drivers are the lucky ones when it comes to motoring.

Research conducted by Green Flag Motoring Assistance in the run up to St

Patrick''s Day showed that 61 per cent of over 55''s believe they are lucky

drivers, compared to just 48 per cent of 16 to 24-year-olds.

And lady-luck seems to be on the female motorist''s side, as 57 per cent of

women said they felt lucky behind the wheel compared with only 45 per cent

of men. Women''s intuition also seems to play a part in motoring, as 13 per

cent said they would change their driving routine if they experienced a bad

omen, compared with only five per cent of men.

Commenting on the results, Green Flag spokesperson Melanie Denny said:

''Mature motorists have many more years of experience than younger drivers,

and this is probably why they feel luckier than others when driving, but it

is surprising to see that women feel luckier than men considering the

amount of women-driver jokes they have put up with over the years!''

Last year Green Flag helped out hundreds of unlucky drivers including over

100,000 punctures and wheel problems, 18,000 who had been involved in

accidents, 10,000 who had mis-fuelled, and over 16,500 who had been victims

of car crime.

Despite their lucky reputation, the Irish didn''t view themselves as

particularly fortunate on the roads. Only 54 per cent of Northern Irish

drivers said they felt they were lucky drivers, compared to 64 per cent of

motorists in the North East of England. And 86 per cent of drivers in

Northern Ireland said they didn''t believe luck played any part in avoiding

breakdown and accidents.

When it came to trouble-free motoring, drivers believed good karma is the

key. An amazing 73 per cent of motorists said treating other road users as

they would like to be treated helped. Surprisingly, only 57 per cent

thought regular vehicle maintenance was the answer.

Melanie said: ''Courtesy to other drivers is of course important, but it was

surprising to see that only around half the drivers surveyed saw regular

maintenance as the way to avoid problems. The majority of breakdowns Green

Flag responds to are caused by poor maintenance and neglect, and many could

be avoided through simple checks such as oil, water, tyre pressure and

tread depth.''

Just a third of drivers surveyed attributed breakdowns to poor vehicle

maintenance, while one-in-five blamed the age of their vehicles, and a

quarter said breakdowns are just down to bad luck.

Seven per cent of drivers surveyed said St Patrick''s Day is a day for good

luck but over three-quarters said it is the same as any other day. The

remaining 17 per cent said the day was all about partying!

www.greenflag.com

More News
  For March 2005
  From Green Flag Motoring Assistance
  For Recovery & Delivery
  Biker247.com Home Page