New research shows that male drivers, especially young male drivers, are twice as likely to be distracted by an attractive passenger than female drivers and over one in ten men admit that an attractive passenger is detrimental to their driving.

These findings are also supported by an observational car simulator study conducted by Transport Research Laboratory, which found that young male drivers become over-confident behind the wheel when they have pretty female passengers in the car. Moreover, claims statistics show that costs arising from male car accidents cost as much as 55% more than claims by women, with young men being more prone to prangs.

Conversely, women are more preoccupied with what their passengers think about their driving skills, with 26 per cent admitting to worrying about this. They are also far more likely to be distracted if it’s their mum rather than their boyfriend in the passenger seat.