Who do Londoners blame for most incidents of road rage?

Tuesday, July 10, 2012
8:00 AM

More than three-quarters of London drivers have been the victim of road rage in the past 12 months, according to research.

The figure of 84 per cent shows road rage to be “major problem”, says insurance company ingenie for whom the survey of nearly 4,000 motorists was conducted by One Poll.

Of London drivers questioned, 39 per cent said BMW drivers were the most responsible for inciting road rage.

The top three frustrations for Londoners while driving were failure to indicate (31 per cent), tailgating (27 per cent) and slow drivers (19 per cent).

Van drivers were most likely to cause London drivers road rage (31 per cent), followed by elderly drivers (28 per cent) then cyclists (26 per cent).

The survey also found that while 83 per cent of drivers don’t think of themselves as a “road rager”, almost 85 per cent admitted to road-rage behaviour.

Dr Lisa Dorn, leading traffic psychologist and reader in driver behaviour at Cranfield University, said: “Road rage is not new, but it is a growing problem. It has been defined as anti-social and angry behaviour exhibited when driving, often due to stress, poor attitudes and personality factors.

“If road rage strikes it’s important not to forget how it can affect your driving – and therefore the safety of yourself, your passengers and other road users.”

Richard King, CEO of ingenie, said: “It would be great if we always had the road to ourselves, but in reality driving is a shared experience and can be stressful.

“If the red mist should descend, be sure to remember the potential impact it could have on those around you.”

Have you been a victim of road rage? Have you ever felt road rage or caused an incident yourself? Who are the worst offenders on the roads most likely to make you angry? Add your comments below.