The latest report by the Institute of Advanced Motorists has found that almost 2 out of 3 young, inexperienced male drivers think they are more skilful than the average motorist.
Despite novice drivers being calculated as the highest risk group on our roads and male drivers between 17-29 more than twice as likely to be killed or seriously injured as female drivers (according to DfT road casualty statistics), bravado and a lead right foot are still major issues when young men get behind the wheel.
The road safety charity found that in contrast, only 32% of young women believe they are more skilled than other drivers.
A staggering 30% of car occupant deaths are drivers aged 17-24, yet according to the DVLA, only eight percent of drivers in the UK fall into this age group.
IAM chief executive Simon Best said: "Young male drivers suffer from a lethal combination of overconfidence and inexperience. They don't need curfews and other restrictions on their driving; they need to practice and gain driving experience safely.
"There are many paying thousands of pounds a year in insurance and killing themselves. The solution to this problem is to link driver training and insurance discounts."
The IAM is calling for more young driver training through incentives such as lowering insurance premiums through more advanced driving tests.
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