| Copyright: | Marketwire | | Source: | Marketwire | | Wordcount: | 931 |
SAN FRANCISCO, CA, January 12 / MARKET WIRE/ --
Quality Planning, the ISO company
that validates policyholder information for auto insurers, has released
proprietary findings that confirm a strong correlation between what people
drive and how they drive. The findings show that drivers of
high-performance vehicles are by no means in the lead when it comes to
counting the Top 10 most-ticketed vehicles. Topping the list with the most
violations was the Hummer H2/H3, with 4.63 times the number of violations
compared to the overall average. At the other end of the spectrum is the
old standby -- the pick-up truck.
Speculating why certain vehicles (and their drivers) are ticketed more or
less frequently is a subject of great debate. The driver behind the wheel
of one vehicle may be eager to express his individuality, while another
views his vehicle as nothing more than a way to get from A to B. Mark S.
Foster, author of "A Nation on Wheels: The Automobile Culture in America
Since 1945," offered his assessment on the statistics: "Hummer drivers feel
like kings of the road because of their elevated driving position. As these
statistics show, they are leading the pack when it comes to violating the
law, which may reflect their driving attitude."
"The sense of power that Hummer drivers derive from their vehicle may be
directly correlated with the number of violations they incur," said Dr. Raj
Bhat, president of Quality Planning. "Or perhaps Hummer drivers, by virtue
of their driving position, are less likely to notice road hazards, signs,
pedestrians, and other drivers."
Another surprise that emerged from the statistics: three different Scion
models made the Top 10 list of vehicles with the highest percentage of
violations. According to Toyota, the Scion tC''s average customer is under
25 years old, and the Scion demographic skews to early 30s. Youth typically
does correlate with a higher incidence of violations, and Toyota''s
popularity with youthful drivers may partially explain this new-found
notoriety. Not so surprising is that two of the most powerful cars on the
road, both sold by Mercedes, also appear in the Top 10.
Table 1 -- vehicles with highest percentage of violations
Make Model Body Style Violations*
Hummer H2/H3 SUV 463%
Scion tC Coupe 460%
Scion XB Station Wagon 403%
Mercedes Benz CLK63 AMG Coupe 397%
Toyota Solara Coupe 306%
Mercedes Benz CLS63 AMG Coupe 276%
Scion XA Hatchback 275%
Subaru Outback Station Wagon 266%
Audi A4 Sedan 264%
Toyota Matrix Hatchback 264%
* Violations/100,000 miles driven, expressed as percentage of average.
On the "Well-Behaved Vehicle List" are those vehicles whose drivers'' moving
violations are well below average. Violations involving these vehicle
models appear to correlate positively with driver age, occupation, and/or
lifestyle. For example, the Jaguar XJ and Buick Park Avenue are often
driven by mature, experienced drivers who are more focused on comfort and
driving experience than on personal expression. In addition, compared to
those vehicles with numerous violations, there are more minivans, SUVs, and
pickups with low violations. That finding is worthy of a tip-of-the-hat to
soccer moms and hard-hat workers, who, day in and day out, are among the
safest drivers on the road.
Table 2 -- vehicles with lowest percentage of violations
Make Model Body Style Violations*
Jaguar XJ Sedan 11%
Chevrolet Suburban SUV 16%
Chevrolet Tahoe SUV 21%
Chevrolet C/K-3500/2500 Pickup 28%
Buick Park Avenue Sedan 32%
Mazda 6 Sedan 34%
Buick Rainier SUV 37%
Oldsmobile Silhouette Minivan 37%
Buick Lucerne Sedan 40%
GMC Sierra C1500 Pickup 40%
*Violations/100,000 miles driven, expressed as percentage of average.
Study Methodology
Traffic code violations data for a one-year period from 2007 and 2008 were
used for the study. Vehicles that were discontinued for more than 10 years
were not included in the analysis. Violations were standardized based on
the number of violations per 100,000 miles driven for each model. That
standardization accounts for the differences in average annual miles driven
by different models. Each vehicle model''s violation count per 100,000 miles
was compared with the average across all the models to identify the 10
models with the highest and lowest violations, as compared to the average.
For example, Hummer drivers were 4.63 times more likely to get a ticket, as
compared to the average.
About ISO
A leading source of information about risk, ISO provides data, analytics,
and decision-support services to professionals in many fields, including
insurance, finance, real estate, health services, government, human
resources, and risk management. Using advanced technologies to collect,
analyze, develop, and deliver information, ISO helps customers evaluate and
manage risk. The company draws on vast expertise in actuarial science,
insurance coverages, fire protection, fraud prevention, catastrophe and
weather risk, predictive modeling, data management, economic forecasting,
social and technological trends, and many other fields. To meet the needs
of diverse clients, ISO employs an experienced staff of business and
technical specialists, analysts, and certified professionals. In the United
States and around the world, ISO helps customers protect people, property,
and financial assets. For more information, visit www.iso.com.
About Quality Planning
An ISO business, Quality Planning is focused exclusively on providing
rating integrity solutions to auto insurers. Quality Planning works with
insurance companies to identify areas of significant rating errors using
sophisticated database management, statistical analysis and modeling,
customized survey design, and highly targeted customer interaction. Quality
Planning helps clients work within their existing rating plans and charge
fair prices to policyholders based on a true representation of risk. The
company was founded in 1985 and is headquartered in San Francisco. For more
information, visit www.qualityplanning.com.
Contact:
Tim Cox
Zing Public Relations
650-369-7784
Email Contact
This is a news service of Thomson Business Intelligence Service ©2006. This content is for your personal use only, subject to Terms and Conditions. No redistribution allowed.
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