Women's car insurance news
13/09/2007
Cheap car insurance customers told not to stop to help
Motorists are being urged to protect themselves and their cheap car insurance by not stopping to help other drivers who have broken down on the hard shoulder of a motorway.
Research conducted to mark National Motorway Month, August 2007, found that a quarter of motorists were prepared to stop to help someone else who had broken down at the side of a major road.
However, it has long been known that this is the most dangerous thing to do in these circumstances, and it lead to 124 people being killed and more than 1,000 being injured between 1994 and 2004.
The RAC Foundation and the Suzy Lamplugh Trust have got together to encourage motorists to keep themselves and their cheap car insurance safe by asking them to drive on by.
A spokesperson for the Suzy Lamplugh Trust said: "If you want to help people who have broken down and are waiting on the hard shoulder, then the best thing might just be to keep driving and leave it to the professionals.
"By pulling over and approaching motorists who have broken down - especially lone women or women with young children - you could make them nervous enough about their personal safety to get back in the car, thereby putting themselves in danger of being hit by another vehicles.
"Before stopping to help, think about whether this could actually increase the stress and danger for those you are trying to help, by making them have to choose between road safety and personal safety."
A representative of the Highways Agency also pointed out that it was illegal for any motorists to stop on the hard shoulder unless it was an emergency, and that those who stop to lend a hand would indeed be breaking the law. He went on to encourage motor insurance customers that to avoid the situation altogether, they should ensure their car is in a good condition before setting out on a journey.
More information about hard shoulder safety and other personal safety issues can be found at http://www.suzylamplugh.org
