General News
28 July, 2024
Falsifying hours in logbooks
ALMOST half of Australian motorists aged 18 to 27 are exaggerating the number of hours recorded in their learner driver’s logbook, survey data reveals.
A Budget Direct spokeswoman said of the 968 Aussies to take part in the Budget Direct Car Insurance Learner Driver Survey, nearly 40 per cent of 18-to-27-year-olds admitted to falsifying the entries in their logbook.
“Furthermore, 60 per cent of all respondents said they’d qualified for a provisional licence without being required to complete a logbook of supervised hours behind the wheel,” she said.
“There was a strong contrast between the logbook tracking hours expected of manual drivers compared to those who drove automatic.
“The survey data showed that those who held a manual licence were more likely to forge their logbooks, with males being the most likely gender to do so.
“New South Wales and Victoria topped the class with 120 total hours logged required as a learner, with 20 of these hours’ night driving. Both Queensland and the ACT required 100 hours logged, and 10 night hours.
“The Northern Territory had no minimum for total or night hours.
“The survey showed that in the past 10 years, there had been a noticeable shift in car transmission preferences.
“Despite the increase in young people opting for an automatic licence over a manual, those taking a manual test have always had a higher pass rate than those taking an automatic one.
“Additional survey data revealed that about 23 per cent of 18 to 27-year-old motorists failed to look over their shoulder during their practical driving exam. A further 9 per cent admitting to failing to indicate/signal.
“When it came to sentiment around safety, more than 40 per cent of respondents believed that recording mandatory logbook hours in different weather conditions was helpful in improving the learner driver process.
“Other improvement options identified included offering refresher courses for non-professional supervisors, such as a parent, improving the quality of driving instructors, and increasing the minimum age of learner-drivers and overall logbook hours.”
For the full breakdown and further insights from the Budget Direct Learner Driver Survey visit https://bit.ly/3YgNocz
