Brits driving on Sundays between 3am and 4am are at the highest risk of accidents, new research has revealed. Analysis by Confused.com shows that the riskiest hours to drive in the UK are between 11pm and 4am, and that drivers are most likely to be involved in a crash between 3am to 4am on a Sunday.
The comparison site warned that late-night hours are the most dangerous times to drive in Britain due to low visibility, fatigue, speeding and the increased likelihood of drink-driving. Despite the fact that roads are much quieter after midnight, the risk per vehicle soars. Busy times, such as Christmas and Bank Holidays, also make smashes more likely.
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Weekday commuters and drivers on weekend mornings are at the least risk, when the roads are busier and traffic moves at slower speeds, making other drivers' movements more predictable and reducing the risk of a pile-up.
The busiest crash window does vary by location. Last year, the South East of England saw a huge number of smashes from 5pm to 6pm - Kent had 265 crashes, Surrey 215, and Essex 205.
Confused.com used data from the Department for Transport for its analysis, by comparing the number of accidents with the volume of cars on the road every hour for each day of the week.
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Rhydian Jones, a car insurance expert from Confused.com said: “Road safety relies on more than just how many cars are on the road. It depends on how conditions evolve through the day, and our analysis makes that pattern unmistakably clear.
"It’s the late-night and early-morning hours that are proportionately the most dangerous. That’s when visibility drops, fatigue sets in, and roads are quiet enough that drivers may take more risks."
This comes as almost one in three drivers admit to driving over the speed limit, while half of drivers have been involved in or witnessed a road accident.
