When satnav and stupidity mix, the results are not pretty

By Davey Winder
Tuesday, 22 July 2008 21:17

Home IT

Just how stupid can motorists be when it comes to satnav? The answer, according to a new survey, is very stupid indeed. How about so stupid that one motorist drove onto railway tracks and caused a train crash, or the lorry driver delivering goods from Turkey to Gibraltar who went on a 1,600 mile detour via the UK? We reveal the most stupid satnav drivers ever...

According to the Daily Mirror newspaper, which got a car insurance company to carry out a survey into satnav motoring habits, it appears motorists are allowing GPS satellite navigation devices to suck their brains dry of common driving sense.

Some of the statistics revealed by the survey are nothing short of shocking. In the United Kingdom alone, the Mirror says, 300,000 drivers admit that they either have had or have nearly had an accident caused by their satnav. 1.5 million admit to driving dangerously when they have made an illegal or sudden turn in busy traffic because the nice satnav lady told them to. Five million admit to driving the wrong way down a one way street for the same reason.

20 percent of drivers blamed the satnav for making them lose concentration when driving in traffic, and the same number admit that the devices send them to the wrong destinations anyway.

With more than half of Britain's motorists, that's about 14 million people, using satnav devices the figures make for worrying reading. Especially so when more than a third say that they are confused by the in-car technology. But not half as confused, nor half as worrying, as the top five most stupid satnav users ever.

Read on to discover what five people have done to deserve the title of a seriously stupid satnav user...

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