HOLLYWOOD, MD — Results from a recent study show that people with certain kinds of cars are more likely to get a traffic citation. Did your car make the list?
A Verisk Analytics company that validates policyholder information for auto insurers, Quality Planning (QPC), released these findings in a study analyzing the relationship between what people drive and how they drive them, according to a 2015 Business Insider article.
QPC discovered the origins of vehicles in the ‘Spirited Vehicles’ category were predominantly those of foreign manufacturers but not necessarily of German or Italian heritage.
Drivers of the Mercedes-Benz SL-Class roadster topped the list, with four times the number of violations compared with the average. But, not surprisingly, Scion, the Toyota auto line designed expressly for Generation Y, had not one but two entries in the top ten.
Other vehicles such as the Hummers and the Pontiac Grand Prix finished out the category. SUVs and hatchbacks consistently showed lower violations on average than traditional coupe and sedan model vehicles.
The following vehicles were most likely to be pulled over:
- Mercedes-Benz SL Class
- Toyota Camry and Solara
- Scion TC
- Hummer H2 and H3
- Scion xB
- Mercedes-Benz CLS 63 AMG
- Acura Integra
- Pontiac Grand Prix
- Volkswagen GTI
The study took gender into the equation, noting that 73 percent of Hummers tended to be driven by men between the ages of 30 and 60.
Only the Mercedes CLK sedan and the Acura Integra coupe were more likely to be driven by men than women. Conversely, Camry-Solara drivers were 61 percent female, with only 26 percent younger than 30, according to the study.
The QPC study also ranked the ten least likely vehicles to be pulled over for a traffic citation, calling them the ‘Cautious Vehicles.’
The following vehicles were the least likely to be pulled over for a traffic citation:
- Buick Rainier
- Mazda Tribute
- Chevrolet C/K- 3500/2500
- Kia Spectra
- Buick Lacrosse
- Saturn Aura Hybrid
- Oldsmobile Silhouette
- Chevrolet Uplander
- Hyundai Tucson
- Pontiac Vibe
With respect to body type, eight of the top ten were either a SUV or minivan. This suggests that carrying passengers, and possibly younger passengers in car seats, makes a noticeable difference in how one drives.
Interestingly, 60 percent of SUV drivers in this category were women, whereas for minivans, 51 percent of these drivers were women. With the Oldsmobile Silhouette minivan and the Buick LaCrosse SUV, the drivers were split equally across gender but differed dramatically in age, with Buick showing 81 percent of ticketed drivers over 60 years old compared with just 8 percent of Silhouette drivers.
“These findings and the corresponding trends they reveal are very interesting,” said Bob U’Ren, senior vice president of Quality Planning. “Besides the sociological aspect of ‘who drives what,’ the manner in which private passenger cars and trucks are driven has a meaningful bearing on how much individuals and families pay for auto insurance.”
The study was recently expanded to include available statistics and examines multiple vehicle makes and models. The results are quantified from the tendency of each vehicle to be ticketed by law enforcement based on the number of moving violations per 100,000 miles driven.
Check out this link for the study.
Jacqui Atkielski can be contacted via email at j.atkielski@thebaynet.com.