Driving can be affected by cold and flu

PCP research agency carried out the study on behalf of Lloyds TSB Insurance and put one hundred drivers through a hazard simulator test. The drivers tested had a range of conditions including stress, colds and headaches as well as 50 who were healthy. The study found that drivers with colds scored on average 11% worse which is equivalent to the effect of a double whisky. Applying this 11% effect to reaction times the study has said that it would 1metre (3.3ft) to a stopping distance if travelling at 30mph (48km/h), this is on top of a normal distance of 12m (40ft). If travelling at 70mph (113km/h), it would add 2.3m (7.5ft) to a normal shopping distance of 96m (315ft). In a separate poll by YouGov which consisted of 4,000 people, it found 22 people had an accident while having a bad cold whilst 5 people that had an accident while they had flu. An estimated 33.5 million adults drive in Britain and taking the YouGov figures this would equate to 125,000 accidents caused last year by drivers with cold and flu. Experts have said that being ill could affect driving ability. YouGov have warned that feeling unwell at the wheel particularly when combined with medication or fatigue could have a significant impact on driving ability.