Presence of their partner makes more than half of women drivers nervous

More than half of the women drivers feel nervous and stressed out when their husband or boyfriends sit in the co-driver’s seat, a new survey has found.

According to a survey carried out for the UK’s largest insurer Aviva, men are apparently less likely to be affected as one in ten admitted that they actually drive more carefully when their partner is in the car.

Nine per cent of men said that they do not allow their partner drive their car, while a fifth of them said this is because they do not rate their partner’s driving skills as highly as their own.

Twenty-six per cent believe their car is too powerful for their partner to drive and 16 percent feel that their partner faces lack of confidence when driving. 

However, women do not completely agree with men’s confidence in their own driving abilities as 13 percent of them think that their partner is overconfident on road while one in ten assert that their partner drives too fast or recklessly.

By comparison, 17% of men say they are a better driver than their partner and a further 16 per cent do not think their partner is competent at parking. 

While there is general agreement among men and women that the former carry out most of the driving in their relationships, with 43 per cent of men claiming to be ‘the driver’ compared with just 10 per cent of women, this does vary depending on the type of journey.

“While men in relationships might feel more comfortable taking on the majority of driving, it is important that both men and women regularly get behind the wheel to ensure that their skills remain fresh,” the Daily Mail quoted Heather Smith, Aviva’s director of marketing, as saying.

“As this research shows, women are less likely to get behind the wheel when in a car with their partner and this has affected their confidence in their abilities, which shouldn’t be the case, particularly as other statistics actually show that women are safer drivers than men as they are involved in fewer accidents.

“Simple measures such as sharing the responsibility for longer or more challenging drives, or considering your partner’s confidence when you are in the car together mean that everyone can get the most out of driving and keep their skills topped up,” Smith added.