THE clocks have now gone back, heralding the onset of bad weather and the start of a new year at university.

Many young drivers will be encountering their first winter on the road, as well as a whole new set of hazardous driving conditions such as ice, fog and heavy rain. Students in particular should take extra care as they load up their cars with their term-time kit, especially if their vehicle’s tyres, brakes and shock absorbers are not in prime condition.

According to a survey commissioned by Peugeot to discover young drivers’ attitudes towards safety, 57 per cent of students were uncomfortable with driving on icy roads; 41 per cent driving in fog; 32 per cent in heavy rain; 21 per cent with motorway driving and 12 per cent concerned about driving at night.

Peugeot’s marketing director, Jon Goodman, said: “After such a wonderful long summer and early autumn, many new drivers may have been lulled into a false sense of security about what motoring is really like.”

The most common bad driving habit amongst students, cited by 89 per cent of respondents, was getting frustrated with older people for driving too slowly. Most drivers (61 per cent) said that they knew one or more student drivers prepared to drive even when they knew they had exceeded the legal alcohol limit.