Monday 20th June 2005

Spain boosts driver training

Positive points system should be adopted says ABD

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Positive points encourage driver education

Motoring organisation the Association of British Drivers (ABD) today called for the UK government to copy the new Spanish system of positive points for drivers, which encourages driving training and education.

ABD road safety spokesman Mark McArthur-Christie said, "We are pleased to see the Spanish government introducing a measure the ABD has long proposed for the UK.

"Under the new system in Spain existing drivers will start with a tally of 12 points with points being deducted when offences causing risk occur. New drivers will start with eight points rising after three years offence- and accident-free. Good drivers will be able to increase the number of points on their licence. After three years conviction-free they will gain two points, with a further three years gaining a further point. Four points will be awarded for those taking further driver training courses.

"This system has the huge benefit of giving incentives for drivers and riders to take training before they have a crash or commit an offence, something that has been severely lacking in the UK. Current practice only sends drivers on training courses after the event. Training is seen as part of their punishment. Responsible drivers who drive safely or choose to take advanced training of their own volition get no recognition from the authorities".

The ABD urges the new road safety minister to urgently consider introducing a similar system in the UK. The organisation strongly believes that a carrot and stick approach to road safety will achieve far better results than that of recent years that has relied only on the stick, a system that has failed dismally to reduce fatalities.

• ABD Web site

[dresser1]

The Spanish system is a real positive step to encouraging drivers. It should be adopted here straight away. The English system is all punishment and revenue collection which builds a resentment against the ruling powers. Not much pleasure in driving anymore.

Mike Berman

[lucozade]

The British (not English!) system will not change whilst the Insurance Companies have a means of charging more money for your policy which in turn generates more insurance tax for the government.

Think about it.

[charltm]

Far better than our system, but... the extra points should be for advanced driver training and accident-free motoring, not for offence-free motoring, for towo reasons:
(i) the offence-free driver already benefits by not having his licence endorsed; extra points for not offending would be double-counting; and
(ii) it is quite possible to commit driving offences without ever driving at all dangerously. Those who cause accidents deserve more punishment than those who exceed an arbitrary speed limit, for instance.

[victormeldrew]

Disagree with that last comment. I don't see how there is double counting, and as far as some offences not being "real", then the argument must be that they shouldn't be offences at all (i.e scrap or raisde speed limits).

This sort of scheme has been suggested on PistonHeads before now and it does make sense in terms of making it carrot and stick rather than just stick.

But it is true to say that with the "safety" lobby in this country so obsessed with speed control at the expense of all else this has a snowballs chance in hell of happening here.

[Mr Whippy]

Hmmm, kinda works.

I often think it would be better for them to be awarded with special tests being completed.

Much like in Gran Turismo. You can get through half the game ok with just Bronze, but get bonuses for being extra good.

To put in alot of work to get them is an incentive not to loose them!


However, getting them simply for sitting on your arse is no good. Don't drive for three years you get recognition in theory, even though you are possibly loosing skills by not being on the road driving.


I think the whole points system is silly. We can get banned for speeding by say 3mph several times, or have several crashes and not be banned... which is worse?

But like has been said, insurance tax is big business, the government probably love the fact most of us have points!

Dave

[alextgreen]

Simple, logical, fair.

When was the last time we heard those words around here?

[xxplod]

This IS the way forward. Why have we not thought of this before?

[james]

That sounds like a very sensible system to me.

Of course, the UK could never adopt such a simple and sensible system. We would have to run a pilot of it first, and then upon success, completely change it into something incomprehensible and pseudo random.

Cynical? Me?

[Mark_SV]

Time to get e-mailing your local MP, then:

www.locata.co.uk/commons/

[nonegreen]

This is just posturing. We have to create nice safe administrivia jobs using Euro money. The Spanish in fairness are at least positive but it will make no difference to the number of people killed on the road. The evidence suggests that driver training has no impact, driver experience has some impact but the 2 key issues are vehicle design and road design. The per mile driven deaths in Spain make us look perfect at the moment so lets see if they improve first, before wading in with a new lot of civil servants at the DSA. The ABD should have more sense than to jump on band waggons like this it is a government initiative (ableit Spanish) therefore total failure is odds on favourite.

[Mark_SV]

nonegreen said:

The evidence suggests that driver training has no impact, driver experience has some impact but the 2 key issues are vehicle design and road design.

What evidence? I wasn't disagreeing, but wondered if you could point me in the right direction.

I've seen little evidence about driver training on road safety, as I thought there had been few well-designed studies done in this area.

Any idea where to look?

Many thanks,

Mark