An MP report has shown that when the clocks spring forward, drivers are left dozy behind the wheel.
Daylight saving time, also known as summer time, has now caused the clocks to “spring forward” in many countries around the world, including much of the U.S. and Canada, and this has caused health and auto insurance news headlines to flare up with controversy, statistics, and discoveries about the impact that the practice has on our society.
This trend will occur once again at the end of the month, as many other countries change on the last Sunday in March.
Manitoba Public Insurance recently released a report to help to illustrate the impact that moving the clocks ahead has had on drivers. An analysis of the auto insurance data that was collected in 2014 revealed that collisions rose by 20 percent on the roadways throughout the province on the day following the changing of the clocks, when compared to the average collision reporting for every other Monday throughout last year.
That auto insurance report indicates that the effect on motorists is a measurable, and sizeable one.
According to the Manitoba Public Insurance vice president of business development and communications, and the chief product officer, Mary Ann Kempe, “The data suggests there can be an effect on drivers when the clocks move forward one hour.” She also went on to explain that on the Monday that occurs immediately after daylight savings time kicks in, “there were 300 collisions reported, compared to an average of 249 for all other Mondays that year.”
Kempe recommended increasing awareness with regards to the issue of impaired driving as a result of the changing of the clocks at this time of the year. Her hope is that by making drivers more aware of the fact that they may not be as sharp as they typically would be while behind the wheel, they will take the necessary steps to help to make certain that they obtain the rest that they need, and that they are “alert when behind the wheel.”
This auto insurance trend is also supported by a range of different medical studies that have been conducted on the impact of daylight saving time on motorists. The typical belief is now that the body’s own rhythms and clock are disrupted by the change and it can take a few nights to recover from it, in a manner that is similar to jet lag.
