Sat nav racers are a reckless bunch (From Gazette)

Sat nav racers are a reckless bunch

2:48pm Monday 8th June 2009 in

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RECKLESS racers are regularly speeding on roads to try to beat estimated journey times on their sat navs, it has been revealed.

The worst offenders are drivers under 25, with 26 per cent of them admitting they nearly always challenge themselves to beat estimated sat-nav times, a survey by the Autoglass company found.

Also 17 per cent of 17-18 year olds confessed they had already got penalty points of their licence for trying to outdo the sat nav times.

Overall, two in five of the 3,000 people polled said they regularly exceeded speed limits in a race against sat nav predictions.

Aberystwyth in Wales and Wolverhampton were the worst spots for the sat nav racers, with London, Oxford and Worcester also areas where the dangerous practice was prevalent.

Commenting on the survey’s findings, Autoglass managing director Nigel Doggett said: “Exceeding the speed limit is a serious offence, putting the driver and other motorists in extreme danger on our roads.

“A sat nav takes into consideration the speed limits on our roads when calculating a driver’s estimated journey arrival time and should be used only as a helpful navigation device. Safety for UK motorists is paramount."