Young drivers aged between 17-25 account for 38% of all new dangerous driving endorsements despite this age group accounting for just 7% of all full licence holders.
A dangerous driving endorsement is a mark placed on a driver’s licence as a result of being convicted of travelling in a manner that falls significantly below the expected standard, putting the driver, passengers, and other road users at serious risk.
This can include speeding excessively, running red lights, or driving aggressively.
According to new figures analysed by IAM RoadSmart from data gathered through a Freedom of Information (FOI) request to the DVLA, a total of 1,585 drivers aged between 17-25 inclusive were issued with DD40 (dangerous driving) endorsements on their licences.
This accounts for just over a quarter (27%) of all issued in 2021.
By 2023, this had increased to 1,928 new endorsements, meaning the proportion of new DD40s for this age group had risen to 36% of all issued.
The analysis showed that up until June 2024, there were a total of 1,128 new endorsements, accounting for an astounding 38% of the total issued.
According to the data from the DVLA, those drivers aged between 26-65 accounted for 72% of new DD40 endorsements, with 4,130 added to this age group in 2021. This dropped to 3,378 in 2023, which translated into a proportion of 63% overall.
This has fallen further to 60% as of 1st June 2024. Drivers above the age of 66 represent the smallest overall proportion with just 1% of this age group picking up points for dangerous driving between 2021-24.
Between 2021 and 2024, the youngest driver with a DD40 endorsement was aged just 13-years-old, well before the legal age of being able to start driving a car. The oldest was 94.
The charity is calling for an introduction of Graduated Driving Licences to help with this issue.
IAM RoadSmart Director of Policy and Standards, Nicholas Lyes said: “Something is going awry with driving standards among younger drivers when they now account for well over a third of all new dangerous driving endorsements while at the same time making up a small proportion of overall licence holders.
“A form of graduated driver licensing (GDL) should now be considered as part of an updated road safety strategy. We strongly believe that training, upskilling, and wider experience will foster better responsibility and decision making which will make our roads safer.
“However, this should not be the end of it: By extending the learning period and introducing a probationary period, younger drivers themselves must reap the financial benefit of reduced motor insurance premiums and the Chancellor can play a significant role by waiving insurance premium tax on policies that have been taken out through a GDL scheme or a similar training course.
“We maintain our call for social media companies to take more immediate action by promptly taking down uploaded content where law-breaking is being caught on a mobile phone in a moving vehicle.”
Following the release of the data, RAC road safety spokesperson Rod Dennis said: “These are pretty shocking statistics and are further evidence of the need for us to better support our youngest drivers as they begin their driving careers.
“We hope the Government will now seriously consider the merits of introducing a form of graduated driving licence scheme as part of its future road safety strategy, and one that strikes a balance between new drivers gaining the mobility they need while keeping them as safe as possible.
“Similar schemes introduced in other countries have been proven to reduce casualties.”
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