KEY POINTS:
The age-old debate on whether men or women are better drivers can finally be put to rest and women can toot their own horns for coming out on top.
In a recent survey AA Insurance found that while men were more confident in their driving, it didn't make them better than the opposite sex.
In the poll of 2573 drivers, aged between 18 and 75, a quarter of men described themselves as impatient drivers, compared with 19 per cent of women.
"Men are more inclined than women to exhibit a range of risk taking behaviours while on the road," AA Insurance chief executive Chris Curtin said.
"Men are more inclined to speed, show aggression, fall asleep behind the wheel and to identify themselves as impatient."
A relatively high 15 per cent of men admitted they exceeded the speed limit most of the time, even if only by a few kilometres per hour, compared with only 9 per cent of women.
However, the majority of both genders admitted breaking the speed limit at least some of the time - 79 per cent of women and 78 per cent of men.
A quarter of men surveyed men had momentarily fallen asleep at the wheel, compared with 13 per cent of women.
When asked what they would do if tired when driving, 51 per cent of women said they would stop to take a power nap, compared with 46 per cent of men.
Some 53 per cent of men and 51 per cent of women admitted yelling or gesturing at another driver for doing something they perceived as dangerous or rude.
Seventeen per cent of men admitted tailgating after becoming angry with another motorist and 10 per cent of women admitted the same.
Analysis of historical claims data from AA Insurance found that on average women made around 6 per cent more claims than men, but their average cost of their claims was lower than men.
"Insurance premiums usually take gender into account for these very reasons," Mr Curtin said.
"Men are more likely to be involved in an accident due to overconfident or risky driving, and women are more likely to have had difficulty judging distances, but are generally more courteous on the road."
Crash statistics from the Ministry of Transport show more men than women were involved in fatal crashes on New Zealand roads, and more men than women were injured as a result of road accidents.
But despite the statistics being against them, men were still considerably more confident about their driving abilities than women.
Seventy per cent of men were confident they could train another person to drive, compared with only 54 per cent of women.
- NZPA
