The link between SUVs and minor prangs
As the guys at work know, I’ll take any opportunity to jump in one of our vans. I feel a lot more confident in the high driving position and of course it can be quite fun to peep into people’s gardens. And it seems that I’m not the only one that enjoys the birds eye view - SUVs now account for 24.4% of the total European market. But is the UK ready for this increase in popularity? Possibly not.
Recent research by Accident Exchange links a 35% rise in minor prangs to SUVs. This is interesting when one of the reasons that they’re popular is due to a feeling of increased security… So is it because drivers are too busy being nosy in their high driving position? No, it’s because of parking bays!
When those little square boxes were drawn up, cars were on average much smaller. The average UK parking bay is 4.8m long and 2.4m wide, but SUVs such as the Mercedes-Benz GL-Class are more than 5m long and nearly 2m wide.
This causes all sorts of complications; their bottoms stick out onto the road causing an obstacle for passing cars, it’s hard to open their doors when they’re parked near another car and of course it’s no walk in the park for the cars to get in and out of parking spots.
And if those parking bays are in a multi-storey car park, then there’s the added obstacle of pillars and tight ramps to go around. All in all, trying to find that last bay to do some Christmas shopping on a Saturday afternoon could be quite a stressful experience.
Add to that the fact that the average cost of a minor SUV prang is estimated to be £2,050, you might find yourself actually having to return all your Christmas shopping anyway.
So if you are thinking of getting an SUV, and spend a lot of time nipping into town or other congested areas, it might be a good idea to steer towards the smaller ones on the market! At least while the parking bay issue remains parked.
Recent research by Accident Exchange links a 35% rise in minor prangs to SUVs. This is interesting when one of the reasons that they’re popular is due to a feeling of increased security… So is it because drivers are too busy being nosy in their high driving position? No, it’s because of parking bays!
When those little square boxes were drawn up, cars were on average much smaller. The average UK parking bay is 4.8m long and 2.4m wide, but SUVs such as the Mercedes-Benz GL-Class are more than 5m long and nearly 2m wide.
This causes all sorts of complications; their bottoms stick out onto the road causing an obstacle for passing cars, it’s hard to open their doors when they’re parked near another car and of course it’s no walk in the park for the cars to get in and out of parking spots.
And if those parking bays are in a multi-storey car park, then there’s the added obstacle of pillars and tight ramps to go around. All in all, trying to find that last bay to do some Christmas shopping on a Saturday afternoon could be quite a stressful experience.
Add to that the fact that the average cost of a minor SUV prang is estimated to be £2,050, you might find yourself actually having to return all your Christmas shopping anyway.
So if you are thinking of getting an SUV, and spend a lot of time nipping into town or other congested areas, it might be a good idea to steer towards the smaller ones on the market! At least while the parking bay issue remains parked.
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