There are many reasons why car insurance for women is so much cheaper than for men. One such reason is the fact that ladies are less likely to speed, a habit which vastly reduces their chances of having a car accident and, consequently, having to make a claim on their female driver insurance policy.
Brunel University has carried out a survey of male and female drivers to find out more about male and female attitudes to speeding and speed cameras. Its findings were conclusive: many more women than men obey the speed limit and feel speed cameras are useful in preventing accidents and not just money-making machines.
The majority (56%) of lady drivers, just as companies specialising in car insurance for women would hope, comply with the speed limit. This compares to just 43% of men.
39% of men admitted to braking briefly to comply with speed cameras and then speeding up once they had passed the trap, whilst just 25% of women said that they did this. Braking sharply for speed cameras can be dangerous, especially in poor weather, and has caused numerous accidents - usually involving men - across the UK.
The results of the study also showed that ladies are much more supportive of speed cameras, with double the number of women than men saying that they want more to be installed in their local area.
Men were shown to be significantly more cynical than women with regard to the purpose of speed cameras, with many male drivers believing that they were just there to generate revenue rather than to make the area safer. This is reflected in the vastly male-dominated membership of the anti-camera campaigners the Association of British Drivers.
Claire Corbett, author of the Brunel University study, commented: "Our findings and those of other research together show that women tend to drive more safely and think more about driving and road safety matters than men.
"It is therefore important that the views of both sexes inform any decision by policymakers to change limits or to adjust speed enforcement policy.
"Women are more compliant in their behaviour and it seems that men are more keen, perhaps biologically and culturally, to engage in risk-taking behaviour."
Lee-Anne Bass of ladies' motor insurance company CoverGirl Car Insurance Services said: "This study confirms our reasons for giving women drivers much cheaper car insurance; ladies are statistically less likely to take risks that could end in an accident."