48% of car accidents on Fridays happen during post-work rush: Aviva

SINGAPORE – Almost half (48 per cent) of the car accidents on any given Friday took place during the after-work rush, between 5.30pm to 8pm, statistics of insurer Aviva showed.

The proportion was significantly higher than for any other day during the same time period, Aviva said today (Jan 28) in a press release.

On Mondays, for instance, accidents during the post-work rush accounted for only 26 per cent.

Also, 12 per cent of car accidents occurred before the car has even left the car park, and 23 per cent along expressways, whilst accidents at junctions accounted for 13 per cent.

The remainder occurred along the roads, with the top 10 accident hotspots (in alphabetical order) being: Alexandra Road, Balestier Road, Braddell Road, Bukit Timah Road, Clementi Road, Dunearn Road, Lornie Road, Thomson Road, Upper Serangoon Road, Upper Thomson Road and Yio Chu Kang Road.

Majority of these roads are either undergoing major construction or exposed to construction projects nearby, and are also listed as “black spot locations” by the Land Transport Authority.

Contrary to the long debated stereotype of women being inferior drivers, Aviva’s claims statistics showed that men were 1.4 times more likely to get into an accident than women.

The most common type of accident was the front-to-rear collision, which accounted for 41 per cent of all reported accidents. Fifteen per cent were involved in front-to-side collisions, 13 per cent chain collisions, while another 12 per cent reported an accident from a side swipe, which typically happens when two cars are both making a turn. Seven per cent reported an accident that occurred while the driver was reversing.

Nearly two out of five claims in 2015 were from drivers claiming against their own policy for own damage, according to Aviva.