As part of Co-operative Insurance’s ongoing "2 Young 2 Die" campaign, 2,079 drivers under the age of 25 were polled via 2young2die.org.uk and 1,143 admitted to driving under the influence. Historically, drunk driving has been the catalyst for motoring convictions. However, the figures suggest that drug driving is on the rise, with 18% of young drivers polled admitting to driving under the influence of illegal drugs and 37% under the influence of alcohol.

David Neave, director of general at Co-operative Insurance, commented: “At least 15,935 people in the U.K. were killed or hurt by drink and drug-drivers in 2007, whilst these figures do not suggest that every young driver was over the drink drive limit they are very concerning especially with reports warning that illegal drug use in the U.K. is on the increase.”

Research by the Transport Research Laboratory has found that 17% of drivers who die in road traffic accidents have traces of illegal drugs in their system which may have affected their driving. (Tyres & Accessories/Staffordshire, U.K.)