by Ed Towns

Created on: February 22, 2011   Last Updated: May 09, 2011

Your priority when considering a first car for a young driver must be safety. There’s no point in having a great-looking go-faster car if it’s a potential safety risk. Research for the Institute of Advanced Motorists has shown that nearly half of men under 20 who were killed or seriously injured in crashes in the UK were driving cars that were over ten years old - cars that generally offer less crash protection and have fewer safety features.

The best way to get a safe car is to buy the newest vehicle you can. Modern cars are loaded with safety features. They offer better crash protection than many older vehicles and have systems that can help a young driver avoid a collision. One of the key systems to insist upon is ESC - Electronic Stability Control. This emergency system uses sensors to detect when a vehicle is going out of control. ESC reduces the throttle and applies the brakes to the wheels to help the driver regain stability. Don’t buy a car without it.

When considering a first car for a young driver, also check out the whiplash performance of the vehicle on car safety rating websites, such as www.euroncap.com. The head restraints should offer good protection.

Safety must be the number one priority because younger drivers continue to be involved in the highest proportion of collisions. Official figures for the UK show that, in 2009, drivers aged between 17 and 24 made up 12 per cent of driving licence holders but this age group was involved in 26 per cent of crashes. Tragically, young drivers made up a quarter of the 564 fatalities on the country’s roads.

RoadSafe, a forum for promoting and devising solutions to road safety problems, says that choosing an old car can put young drivers at risk. Younger motorists need the safest modern cars they can afford. RoadSafe director Adrian Walsh says: ‘When it comes to buying a car for a new, young driver, it is a bad idea to put them in a cheap old banger. Older vehicles tend to cost less to insure but this benefit is diminished in the event of a crash, as they lack the safety systems found in newer models.’

Of course, it must be said that not all older cars are dangerous. Many secondhand cars have good safety systems. Buyers should check a car’s safety rating and ask about the safety features fitted before making a purchase. Visit roadsafeforparents.com for tips on choosing a safe car - brand new or secondhand. The tips include checking all the tyres, including the spare

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