Young Drivers Scheme wins award

The awards, now in their third year, are organised by Road Safe NI and sponsored by accident management specialist, CRASH Services.

The NFU Mutual Young Drivers Scheme won the Business Sector award for offering an innovative post-test training course that enables new young drivers to enhance their skills and awareness on the road. The UK wide initiative has had strong uptake in Northern Ireland, since its launch in 2014.

The specialist training course is provided by Drive Doctors, a company set up by two former racing drivers, and runs over three years involving a mixture of on road training and online modules.

Martin Malone, NFU Mutual’s Manager for Northern Ireland said: “Young drivers are one of most vulnerable road users groups, particularly in their first year after passing their test, so this is a key priority for the work of Road Safe NI.

“Our award is a wonderful recognition of the efforts and commitment NFU Mutual’s support for our farming customers and rural safety, with a scheme aimed to increase young farmers’ driving skills and address the challenges of rural roads.”

Statistics show that since the course started, participants are involved in 23% fewer collisions than those who have not been on the course and 85% said they have an increased awareness of dangers associated with driving in the countryside.

“As a result, participants enjoy reduced insurance costs when completing the scheme, creating a benefit to both policyholders and the insurer.”