Van Drivers Pull Off the Best Vehicle Manoeuvres, Says Swinton

MANCHESTER, UNITED KINGDOM--(Marketwire -01/22/12)- According to a recent survey by Swinton, the UK's leading van insurance broker, van drivers top the charts when it comes to manoeuvring a vehicle.

One thousand UK drivers were asked to rate their ability to perform difficult vehicle manoeuvres, and over 68 per cent of van drivers gave themselves a five out of five score.

Results suggested that young male drivers still show signs of being over confident when behind the wheel, with 48 per cent saying they were able to perform any vehicle manoeuvre flawlessly.

Only 12 per cent of van drivers gave themselves a low score for their ability to reverse round a corner, with the majority scoring 4 out of five.

Many vans are fitted with bulkheads made of either metal, wood or mesh which can hinder a driver's visibility. Solid bulkheads on vans mean that many drivers cannot use their rear view mirror, leaving them to rely on wing mirrors when on the road.

Whilst having confidence on the road is important to all drivers, being able to judge the size of your vehicle is also important, particularly on busy roads. Underestimating the amount of space needed to park a vehicle could result in damaging another road user's vehicle, and could therefore have an impact on commercial vehicle insurance premiums.

Phil Moss, Commercial Vehicle Manager at Swinton said: "Van drivers spend a lot of time in their vehicles driving to jobs across the whole of the country, so this in itself would give the driver more practice at doing manoeuvres such as parallel parking, reversing round a corner and even turning a vehicle round in a tight space. The fact that vans are considerably larger vehicles than the average car also works in a van driver's favour - it's more difficult so if you can master manoeuvres in a large vehicle, then doing the same in a smaller vehicle should be much easier."

For more information please contact Mairead Rodden or Lucy Gordon at SKV Communications on 0161 838 7770 or email firstname.surname@skvcommunications.co.uk

About Swinton:

 

--  Swinton Commercial is the dedicated commercial insurance division of the
    Swinton Group
--  Swinton Commercial was awarded Commercial Lines Broker of the Year 2008
    and is a finalist at the British Insurer Awards 2009
--  With 603 branches nationwide Swinton is the UK's largest high street
    insurance retailer
--  Unlike many other companies in the financial services industry, Swinton
    is committed to keeping its branches open for business, and part of the
    community
--  Swinton provides a one-stop-shop for the insurance and related needs of
    its clients, offering home, car, caravan, business, holiday, motorbike
    and even classic car insurance
--  With a dedicated team of advisors on hand at every branch to search a
    panel of insurers to offer quality cover at competitive rates