Young drivers under the age of 21 could be banned from the road after nightfall if recommendations in a Government-funded safety report are implemented.
A recent Transport Research Laboratory study commissioned by the Department for Transport proposes several ways in which the high number of road accidents involving youngsters could be reduced. Their ideas include preventing under 21s getting behind the wheel in the dark and also banning them from carrying passengers.
According to the latest figures, teenagers and those in their early twenties are more than twice as likely as older drivers to have an accident. A result of this statistic is that motor insurance can often prove to be an expensive outlay, even when purchased from a specialist young driver car insurance provider.
The Department for Transport's recommendations are sure to provoke mixed feelings among the nation's youngsters. One teenager questioned by Hoot Car Insurance Services, the young driver car insurance experts, branded the idea as ridiculous.
Lucy Howden, a 19-year-old student from Hampshire, said, "I'm a perfectly safe driver. I take extra care when it's dark or there's bad weather, so why should I, and millions like me, be penalised because of the recklessness of others?"
A spokesman for the organisation proposing the changes in the law was quick to make it clear that the study was still under consultation and was a long way from being finalised.