Young drivers linked to disproportionately more serious casualties than older motorists
Mon, 19 Jan 2026
Younger drivers continue to account for a disproportionate number of serious road casualties, new analysis has revealed.
The news has led to one insurance data analysis firm questioning whether the absence of graduated driver licensing was a “missed opportunity” in the government’s new Road Safety Strategy.
The new strategy aims to cut deaths and serious injuries on Britain’s roads by 65% by 2035. Proposals include reducing the drink-drive limit and introducing mandatory eye tests for over-70s drivers – something that has already outraged older motorists.
There are also plans for a minimum learning period for new drivers – but it is now claimed this doesn’t go far enough.
"It’s understandable that older drivers are under the spotlight, particularly as the driving population ages," says Sarah Vaughan director of insurance data experts Angelica Solutions.
“But when we look at the absolute number of people killed or seriously injured, it’s clear that collisions involving younger drivers have far wider consequences.”
According to Angelica Solutions' own analysis, younger drivers were involved in 44% more collisions involving killed or seriously injured casualties than older drivers in 2024.
While the government’s review into a minimum learning period, which could possibly be six months, is welcome, much more could be done, believes Vaughan.
"The suggested minimum learning periods may sound sensible, but we know that real learning starts on the day someone passes their test.
"Claim frequencies for new drivers jump significantly in month one post-test compared to provisional licence holders. We then see a marked improvement in the weeks which follow.
"Driving with supervision for up to six months is simply not the same as being alone behind the wheel.”
Vaughan said that it’s a “tatistical reality that younger drivers are on the roads more often, carry more passengers and drive in a wider range of conditions.
“Even if older drivers have higher collision rates per mile – which is actually only true for the over-80s – younger drivers’ higher exposure results in significantly more serious casualties.”
And if graduated driving licences – which place restrictions such as driving curfews, lower drink-drive limits and caps on how many passengers new drivers can carry – are a step too far, Vaughan said that mandatory telematics for newly-qualified drivers, within the first two years of passing their test, could be a practical middle ground.
"This would align with existing probationary rules... while also supporting government’s ambitions to reduce drink-driving and risky behaviours.
"It’s about giving young drivers feedback and accountability, almost like keeping the instructor or a parent in the car for those vital early months.”
Will adding a younger driver to my policy as a named driver reduce my premium?
