If you’re planning to drive in the United Kingdom soon, be certain not to cross anybody. A new survey commissioned by Admiral Insurance Co., a British car insurance purveyor, has found that Britain is a nation of irate motorists. Nearly three-quarters of U.K. drivers admit that they get angry with other motorists when they’re behind the wheel. While that’s not necessarily a good thing, it might be forgivable. Two other findings, however, are not: More than 1 in 10 U.K. drivers admit to having followed another driver, and just about the same number of U.K. drivers have even attacked another driver for a real or imagined affront on the highway.
The poll of 3,000 motorists revealed that, of the 72 percent of drivers who admit they feel road rage, more than three-quarters (76 percent) act on their anger by shouting at other drivers, and more than half (52 percent) make offensive gestures. Lest you think the only drivers exhibiting this behavior are young louts, you should be informed that road rage affects both genders. Women are more likely to feel angry when driving, though to be fair it is men who are the most likely to shout or gesticulate at motorists who annoy them.
“Sadly, road rage doesn’t just manifest itself in shouting and gesticulating,” says Admiral managing director, Sue Longthorn. “More than 1 in 10 of the drivers we questioned said they have followed a driver that has annoyed them, while nearly 1 in 10 admitted they have attacked another driver. The same number said they have been attacked by another driver themselves.”
It seems the roads in Britain have become more hostile places than they were five years ago. Nearly half (47 percent) of those polled said they think other drivers are more angry than they were five years ago. At the same time, U.K. drivers aren’t nearly as critical of their own driving habits. Less one-fifth (18 percent) feel they personally are angrier when driving now than they were five years ago.
“Vehicles can bring out the darker side of our personalities,” adds Longthorn. “Many of us will know someone who is mild-mannered most of the time, but who, inside the confines of their car, can become easily enraged by another driver’s sometimes harmless actions.”
