WOMEN drivers have long been the butt of jokes about their ability behind the wheel, but new statistics seem to prove it's men who are more irresponsible.
The latest figures show that in the Bristol area more than 4,000 men currently have points on their licences for using their mobile to make calls or text while driving, while the number of women with points for the same offences stands at just over 1,000.
The information has been released as road safety campaigners launch a nationwide push to clamp down on the use of mobiles, which they say can have deadly consequences.
According to road safety charity Brake, which launches its national Road Safety Week campaign today, the effect of talking on a phone while driving has been shown to be worse than drink driving.
Driver reaction times are 30 per cent slower while using a hands-free phone than driving with a blood alcohol level just over the current UK legal limit and nearly 50 per cent slower than driving normally and soberly.
Brake's new data shows that in the area covered by the BS postcode 4,268 men have points on their licence for using their mobile phones.
This compares to 1,010 women in the same period since laws banning mobile phone usage at the wheel came in ten years ago.
Females make up just 23 per cent of the total 5,284 people with CU80 points - the type of points given to a person 'driving a motor vehicle while using a hand-held mobile telephone or other hand-held interactive communication device'.
The data is mirrored in the south west area as a whole, with males accounting for 80 per cent of all people to have received points for the offence.
Joe Burns, fundraising officer at Brake, told the Bristol Post the figures reflect the fact that males in general take more risks at the wheel.
He said: 'What we have found is, generally, male drivers will be involved in more risky behaviour than their female counterparts.
'Part of our work at the moment is to urge both men and women to take responsibility and reduce those risks which could save lives.
'Using a mobile phone can have devastating consequences, tempting drivers to divert their concentration away from the critical task at hand, often putting our most vulnerable road users in danger.'
Mr Burns pointed to the case of Erik Garland, 25, from Taunton, who was killed in a road crash in March 2012. A taxi turning right into a side road failed to spot him coming the other way on his motorbike and ran into him.
The judge described the cause of the crash as a 'momentary lapse of concentration'.
Erik's mother Janet Garland, who is supporting Road Safety Week 2013, said: 'When you're driving, the smallest distraction can lead to horrendous suffering and needless loss of life. I find it horrifying so many people think they can multitask at the wheel, when the consequences can be so awful.'
Through its campaign Brake are calling for tougher rules and tighter traffic policing.
Mr Burns said: 'Research shows one in five road crashes are caused by distractions during driving. Research also shows that the most common form of distraction is mobile phones. There needs to be more funding for police to do their work properly on the roads and catch offenders. There also needs to be tougher penalties. Currently fines are the same as for not paying television licence - except no one dies when you don't pay your licence.'
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