Paste text below
Text entered
Brits break law 21 times a year
NEWS COPY
The average Brit breaks the law around 21 times a year it emerged yesterday (Tues).
Speeding, eating or drinking and eating whilst driving and not wearing a seat belt are the most common crimes we commit during our day to day lives.
Other car crimes which take place regularly include jumping red lights, parking on double yellow lines and driving someone else's motor without the proper insurance cover.
Downloading music illegally, texting or chatting while driving and cycling without lights on are also offences we regularly commit.
John Miles, business development director for Gocompare.com, which conducted the poll of 3,000 adults, said: ''Brits are becoming so used to breaking the law on a daily basis that they aren't even fazed by their actions.
''A huge number of people choose to regularly break the speed limit, which means British roads are filled with inconsiderate and dangerous drivers.
''And those people who insist on doing things other than actually driving the car - such as eating, drinking or using the mobile phone - are putting their own lives in danger as well as the lives of others.''
The report revealed 79 per cent breaking the speed limit regularly, another seven out of ten eating or drink behind the wheel, while four out of ten drive without a seatbelt from time to time.
And despite numerous government warnings, a third of Brits continue to use their mobile phone while driving the car.
It also emerged 70 per cent of people have cycled on the pavement, without realising it was an offence.
A further 36 per cent regularly download music, films or other files on their computer or laptop without paying for them.
And 34 per cent of people have even had sex in a public place - risking both embarrassment and legal action if caught.
Other law-breaking activities which are common-place include dropping litter (25 per cent) and parking in a disabled spot when shopping (17 per cent).
The top 20 list also shows that 28 per cent of Brits have taken drugs at some point in their life, while 14 per cent think nothing of smoking in a public place.
It also showed one in four people have moved but failed to tell the DVLA of their change of address, while 14 per cent have watched television without a TV license.
Other crimes which are committed regularly but didn't make the top 20 include reading and replying to emails while driving (eight per cent) and driving the car without an MOT (10 per cent).
John Miles added: ''The survey shows the average person who answered feels they break the law 21 times a year, but in reality this number is probably far greater.
''We are sure there are some things people wouldn't even know were illegal - particularly things like failing to clean up dog poo or dropping litter.
''There is a saying that 'rules are made to be broken', but when something has been made illegal it has to be for a good reason.''
Text entered is not saved. Save now
Save above text so that it can be shared and viewed side-by-side with news articles
| 5 news articles similar to text entered | Visualisation | Side-by-side | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| , |
cut |
pasted |
characters |
|||
Loading news articles
Text entered
Brits break law 21 times a year
NEWS COPY
The average Brit breaks the law around 21 times a year it emerged yesterday (Tues).
Speeding, eating or drinking and eating whilst driving and not wearing a seat belt are the most common crimes we commit during our day to day lives.
Other car crimes which take place regularly include jumping red lights, parking on double yellow lines and driving someone else's motor without the proper insurance cover.
Downloading music illegally, texting or chatting while driving and cycling without lights on are also offences we regularly commit.
John Miles, business development director for Gocompare.com, which conducted the poll of 3,000 adults, said: ''Brits are becoming so used to breaking the law on a daily basis that they aren't even fazed by their actions.
''A huge number of people choose to regularly break the speed limit, which means British roads are filled with inconsiderate and dangerous drivers.
''And those people who insist on doing things other than actually driving the car - such as eating, drinking or using the mobile phone - are putting their own lives in danger as well as the lives of others.''
The report revealed 79 per cent breaking the speed limit regularly, another seven out of ten eating or drink behind the wheel, while four out of ten drive without a seatbelt from time to time.
And despite numerous government warnings, a third of Brits continue to use their mobile phone while driving the car.
It also emerged 70 per cent of people have cycled on the pavement, without realising it was an offence.
A further 36 per cent regularly download music, films or other files on their computer or laptop without paying for them.
And 34 per cent of people have even had sex in a public place - risking both embarrassment and legal action if caught.
Other law-breaking activities which are common-place include dropping litter (25 per cent) and parking in a disabled spot when shopping (17 per cent).
The top 20 list also shows that 28 per cent of Brits have taken drugs at some point in their life, while 14 per cent think nothing of smoking in a public place.
It also showed one in four people have moved but failed to tell the DVLA of their change of address, while 14 per cent have watched television without a TV license.
Other crimes which are committed regularly but didn't make the top 20 include reading and replying to emails while driving (eight per cent) and driving the car without an MOT (10 per cent).
John Miles added: ''The survey shows the average person who answered feels they break the law 21 times a year, but in reality this number is probably far greater.
''We are sure there are some things people wouldn't even know were illegal - particularly things like failing to clean up dog poo or dropping litter.
''There is a saying that 'rules are made to be broken', but when something has been made illegal it has to be for a good reason.''
Churn statistics
cut
pasted
characters overlap