Member-only story
Britain’s Worst Drivers
Don’t take road safety tips from these people
I’m guilty as charged… In my 20s, I do recall applying a bit of lipstick while stuck in a rush hour traffic queue, waiting to head into work. I might even have applied eyeliner using the rearview mirror as a guide. But my antics didn’t cause accidents. My vehicle was stationary at the time.
Not everyone is so careful. Research shows that not all young ladies wait for a traffic queue to form before doing their makeup while driving. Headline grabbers in recent years include ladies caught applying makeup while moving, people reading magazines at the wheel, and one lady in Florida who was shaving her bikini line while driving.
A sobering report published in 2009 by Diamond Insurance said that every year, almost half a million road accidents are caused by women applying makeup while driving. They surveyed 4000 women, and 3% admitted to causing an accident while applying cosmetics. They also found that women between the ages of 17 and 21 were more likely to apply makeup while driving than their older counterparts.
In 2012, a lady was spotted hogging the right-hand lane of a motorway while applying makeup, on the phone, and reading. All this took place at 50 mph in the ‘fast’ lane, with a very long queue of traffic behind her. When traffic began to undertake…
