Three million 
drivers admit 
to falling asleep

More than three million British drivers have fallen asleep behind the wheel in the last year, according to new research.
By The Newsroom
Published 20th May 2013, 10:12 BST

Almost one in 10 (3.4 million) of the UK’s more than 38 million motorists “nodded off” while driving, a survey for LV= car insurance firm found.

It contributed to at least 3,357 fatigue-related accidents which have been recorded over the past five years, according to official police figures obtained by the company.

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Among the main causes were long and monotonous roads, a lack of sleep, driving long distances to a holiday destination or after a late work shift.

A fifth (19 per cent) of those surveyed confessed they had hardly been able to keep their eyes open while driving and close to a third (28 per cent) had driven while drowsy. Men (33 per cent) were more likely to be affected by the problem than women (12 per cent).

And with drivers covering an average distance of 85 feet at an average speed of 50mph when they dozed behind the wheel, sleeping motorists were estimated to have done a total of more than 55,000 miles in the last 12 months.