While Forces Cars Direct will fight for your right to drive the latest transport at the best possible prices, it also wants its customers to be safe at the controls of their vehicles. There are innumerable surveys and reports carried out by commercial firms, many of them carrying either spurious claims, or findings, that are intended to draw attention to them. However, very few are dismantled and critically appraised.

As highlighted above, one of these reports relates to a driving survey carried out by a major website. It suggests that the rash of modern technology that is now being fitted to all new cars could resolve many issues prevalent. Yet, its three main claims are as follows:

• Safety on the road - 71% of drivers think that other road users could do more to drive safely.
• Men vs Women - Men are 10% more likely to be involved in an accident, however they feel more confident than women when driving.
• Experience isn’t everything - 74% of drivers who held their licence for 3-4 years have been involved in an accident compared to a UK average of 52%.

The survey further suggests that one in five men never feel safe, when driving, in contrast with one in ten women, while an amazing 59% of survey respondents had endured at least one road traffic accident. However, the statistical quotation of ‘over 1,700 fatalities occurring on our roads between September 2016 and September 2017’ is the emotive headline.

Although I feel personally that the survey’s proposals to reduce incident levels are largely without foundation, whether drivers like it, or not, much of the advanced technology that is appearing (or is about to appear) on our next choice of motorcar, can only ever provide a partial solution. The suggestions are as follows:

• Dash cam - The most common device among drivers due to cost and ease of use, dash cams provide a 24hr recording of the front view of your car. This can be invaluable in insurance claims purposes, as well as encouraging the driver to show greater care in their driving. They cost between £20 and £190. 
• Collision alerts - Usually a part of the vehicle sensor system, or rear-view camera, collision alerts (sometimes referred to as automatic emergency braking) function as a prevention device. In the event of a potential collision, this autonomous system can intervene by slowing or even stopping the car.
• Black box - Telematics, more commonly known as a black box, is a system that monitors how an individual drives, with data sent to the insurance provider. The idea is that driving responsibly is rewarded with lower insurance premiums. However, although they are cost-effective and can help to bring down insurance premiums, an overwhelming 64 per cent of Brits would also not consider using ‘black box’ telematics.

In response, it is worth remembering that, when you pass your Driving Test, you make a notional ‘contract’ to drive with due care and attention. It is YOUR responsibility to conduct your vehicle in such a way that you adhere to the Rules of the Road, as highlighted in the Highway Code. Yet, ask yourself, when was the last time (apart from in the run-up to your Driving Test) that you even glanced at it?

All of the electronic devices in the world that might be fitted to your vehicle will not save you from the bad driving habits of others. Yet, you can have an impact (non-damaging) on them by driving defensively, keeping your wits about you, avoiding distractions and ensuring that you do not inadvertently drive into trouble.

Dash-cams, for all of their apparent popularity these days, can be used ‘in evidence’ of your own driving standards, as well as those of other road-users. Vehicle perimeter monitors, for all their usefulness, when parking, or close-manoeuvring, will not haul-up your vehicle in an emergency situation. If you drive properly in the first place, why would you need an in-car Black Box, which will not make you a ‘better driver’?

Awareness is a key. Being observant is another. In truth, I fear that a reliance on technology is little more than an excuse, supplanted by an aura of laziness, by which blame can be offset for errors made. However, just as a pilot, or train driver, or even a bus driver, recognises that on-going training and skills enhancement are the means-to-an-end, rather than bleat about deaths and casualties on the nation’s roads, perhaps we should all take the bull by its proverbial horns and continue learning. In the process, bad habits would be minimised and, just maybe, we might all enjoy the freedom afforded to us when we obtained our Driver’s Licences in the first place.