What is life like with your car? Let us know and win £500 in John Lewis vouchers | No thanks

A fifth of drivers say they are struggling to adjust to driving again after lockdown

Published 11 June 2020

One in five drivers surveyed say they're having trouble getting back into the habit of driving after doing so few miles during the coronavirus lockdown, with stalling and forgetting to indicate ranking in the top five errors mentioned.

Cars in the UK are, on average, driven more than 7000 miles per year - or an average of 583 miles per month, according to MoT data.

But a survey of 2000 motorists by Hyundai revealed that over the past 28 days, the average driver has covered just 90 miles - with 30 per cent driving 25 miles or fewer. With so little driving, 18 per cent say they have struggled to get back to normal behind the wheel.

Of those who have struggled, 28 per cent had stalled their car, 21 per cent had scraped their wheels on the kerb and 21 per cent forgotten to indicate.

More than four in 10 (44 per cent) think road users have been driving faster during lockdown, with just 10 per cent thinking they have been driving more slowly.

>>> Lockdown speeders: Driver clocked at 151mph during lockdown

Four in 10 motorists said they hadn’t visited a filling station over the past 28 days, with 12 per cent admitting that they had forgotten which side or end they fill up or charge their car. Almost half (48 per cent) are also concerned that the standard of road users' driving will be worse now restrictions have started to lift.

Hyundai also says that 18 per cent of drivers said they've had a near-miss with a cyclist as either a driver or pedestrian. More than four in ten (44 per cent) surveyed by OnePoll for Hyundai admitted they were concerned about the prospect of an increase of cyclists on the road.

Top 10 errors made by drivers since lockdown

Stalled
Struggled to parallel park
Forgot to indicate
Scraped wheels on kerb
Had to think carefully about what each pedal does
Not checking mirrors when pulling away
Forgot where the filler cap was
Forgot to turn the ignition key
Not shut the door properly
Not put their seatbelt on

>>> 2020 manufacturer scrappage schemes

Comments

Engineer Andy on 11 June 2020

Remind me not to be driven by anyone in the future exhibiting these 'symptoms'. I mean, people forgetting how to drive in under three months?!

Reply | Report as offensive | Link

Gary Pearson on 12 June 2020

Fake news!

Reply | Report as offensive | Link

hissingsid on 13 June 2020

If true, which I doubt, one in five drivers are not fit to be on the road.
The standard of journalism on this site gets worse by the day.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link

gavsmit on 15 June 2020

A further two fifths struggle to drive properly but won't admit it, whilst another fifth have always been rubbish drivers.

I have had a few near misses recently due to people wandering over the wrong side of the road (usually whilst talking to a passenger), pulling out without looking, not using indicators at all and generally just driving along as if they are the only person on the planet with no highway code to follow.

I know there's always going to be rubbish / inconsiderate / dangerous drivers out there, but in my experience it's got worse once lockdown was partially lifted.

Reply | Report as offensive | Link

Samanta Smith on 19 August 2024

It really got me thinking. It's totally understandable with how routines changed during lockdown. Speaking of which, during that time, I found a great resource over at https://domypaper.com/ who really helped me with my university writing tasks. Their writing service was a lifesaver, ensuring my assignments were quality despite the challenges of lockdown. It's awesome to see resources out there to support us during these uncertain times!

Edited by Samanta Smith on 19/08/2024 at 10:21

Reply | Report as offensive | Link