Briefing: Insurance sector has ability to steer road safety

I have just returned from a glorious summer break in the south east of France. There were so many highlights – spectacular scenery at the foothills of the Alps, the weather, delightful food. And the glorious pleasure of driving – French drivers struck me as more measured, more observant and, dare I say, more considerate than their UK counterparts.

Driving has been on my mind a lot recently due to the UK government’s proposed road safety reforms that were announced in August 2025.

Among its most eye-catching proposals is the introduction of compulsory eye tests every three years for drivers over the age of 70. It is right that ministers are thinking about this because, as the UK’s population continues to age, one in five drivers will be over 70 by the start of the next decade.

At present, we rely on a self-declaration in this country. If road users can read a number plate 20 metres away and believe their vision is up to scratch, then they are deemed legally fit to drive.

Compare this to France, however, where eye testing is part of the licensing regime and our system seems decidedly laissez-faire.

Does the French approach impact the country’s road accident stats? Surprisingly, the jury is out.

Putting aside my own experience of feeling safer on French roads, there is compelling evidence from the European Transport Safety Council. The non-profit organisation found that French people aged over 70 are much less likely to have a road accident compared to the UK’s senior citizens – a gap attributed in part to regular medical and eye testing.

However, figures from French government body the French Road Safety Observatory (ONISR) put fatality rates linked to road traffic accidents at nearly double that of the UK across all age groups.

Struck by this curious discrepancy, I decided to dig a little deeper, comparing the ONISR’s published data to the Department for Transport’s Reported road casualties Great Britain, annual report: 2023, which was published in September 2024.

Sure enough, the mystery swiftly unravelled.

I found that not only do rural roads in France have higher speed limits than the UK, but that drunk driving, speeding and not wearing a seatbelt are all still consistent challenges on French roads. So, although there are more accidents per kilometre or mile in the UK versus France, these incidents are typically less serious.

Lifelong habits

Based on these Anglo-French findings, it is apparent why some of the UK government’s other road reforms are to be welcomed – such as lower drink driving limits, stricter seatbelt regulations, tougher penalties for uninsured driving, enhanced enforcement measures and a greater focus on vulnerable road users.

However, to my mind the government is still missing a trick.

Within its recently announced road reforms, I would have liked to see more about encouraging the safety of young drivers.

It is vital to educate and embed good driving behaviours from the minute our children pass their driving test. As I have found with my daughter, parents can give plenty of helpful feedback every time they are in a vehicle with newly qualified teens, but generally, this does not make a viable difference.

In my experience, what did have an impact, however, was the telematics box behind the dashboard. After receiving a couple of red warnings for harsh braking, putting my daughter at risk of having her insurance cancelled, she soon got the message.

Compulsory black boxes and limits on car power, number of passengers or hours driving all have a role to play in transforming the driving experience for fledgling road users.

And, while it might seem counterintuitive to think about the young when there are so many obvious challenges at the other end of the age spectrum, the evidence either side of the Channel is as clear as mirror, signal, manoeuvre – embed good behaviours from the minute new drivers pass their test and they will be a safer driver for life.

Influencing driver safety

As an industry, the insurance sector is in favour of proportionate reforms that improve road safety and reduce both the frequency and severity of claims for young and older drivers alike.

But that does not mean we should be passengers just going with the flow.

As a sector, we have an important role to play in accelerating improvements to driver safety. Not just by giving government access to our data, but by educating clients to reduce the likelihood of an incident.