Are we a nation of ‘Jekyl and Drivers’?

Research by Aviva, the new name for Norwich Union, shows that many of us radically change our personality when we’re driving – are you a Racing Driver or Steady Eddie?

The Aviva research involved 4,000 motorists working with Professor Geoff Beattie, Head of the School of Psychological Science at the University of Manchester.

The motorists driving personalities and behaviour were analysed and categorised into 9 personality types.

The results make interesting reading:

• The Racing Driver – 16% – you love risk and like to drive fast and take risks, including breaking the speed limit and overtaking other drivers
• The Realist – 23% – sometimes like to take risks but don’t generally feel the need to, might on occasion jump an amber light but that’s about it for risk
• The Chancer – you take a lot of risks and like to blame others and the situation for any negative outcomes. You do drive fast and can find yourself often overtaking blind and tailgating
• The Opportunist – sometimes take risks but justify these on the basis that there are a lot of bad drivers around. You might for example overtake drivers going too slowly
• The Steady Eddie – You simply don’t like taking risks and drive carefully and keep to the speed limit
• The Thrill Seeker – you believe you’re a born risk taker and take full responsibility for your actions. You’re likely to disregard speed limits, jump red lights on deserted roads and overtake blindly
• The Conformist – 47% – medium levels of risk taken and don’t blame others for problems as you believe you are responsible for driving and to blame for accidents.
• The Snail – you only very rarely take risks and may be over cautious to the point of annoying other drivers. You might for example find yourself driving under the speed limit
• The Worrier – you don’t take any risks and really would prefer to avoid driving. You’ll probably find yourself slowing down way in advance of traffic lights just in case they change colour.

So, which best categorises you when you’re behind the wheel?

Whatever type, make sure you do have the appropriate car insurance in place!