Older drivers are known for being more safety conscious, both in their driving habits and their taste in cars. But is this reputation well deserved?
ALA GAP Insurance decided to challenge this assertion, and in the process has discovered which car manufacturer appeals the most to older drivers, and how the age groups break down for each car.
Discover the surprising information below!
In first place is Mercedes-Benz, who attracted the oldest ALA policy holder. Aged 99, the man is 10 years older than the next oldest policy holder who, at 89 years old, preferred a Nissan. Not too far behind in third place is Skoda, which has had policies bought by a 73-year-old female and an 88-year-old male.
In fourth and fifth places are Volkswagen and Suzuki, which both attracted the oldest female policy holders. Aged 86, the ladies are 10 years older than the next oldest policy holder who, at 76 years old, also bought a Nissan.
Fourth-place Volkswagen attracted the narrowest age range between men and women – just a year between them at 86 and 87. Mercedes-Benz, meanwhile, has the largest range between men and women, at 99 and 74 respectively.
In this next section, ALA looked at how GAP Insurance policy holders for the ‘Top 5 Cars Most Popular with Older Drivers’ broke down between the different age groups and sexes – and produced some very unexpected results in the process.
Out of all the car manufactures in our Top 5, Mercedes-Benz has arguably the closest spread for policyholders for men and women. Across all the age ranges, the percentages of men and women who bought Mercedes-Benz GAP Insurance policies is strikingly similar; In particular, the age groups 20-29, 30-39 and 50-59 are only one or two percentages apart.
The age groups between men and women buying Nissan GAP Insurance in 2015 show a similar pattern as with Mercedes-Benz customers. Both male and female Nissan owners aged 30-39 and 40-49 are most likely to protect their investment. The third most likely age range to protect their investments are the 50-59 year olds, at 19% and 18% respectively, with just a one percent difference.
Further down the Top 5 now, we start to see a larger divergence between men and women. In particular, the gap between men and women who bought a Skoda GAP Insurance policy in 2015 is widest between the 61-70 age group. With 8% of sales attributed to women aged 61-70, compared to 18% in men of the same age, that figure is one of the biggest differences in our top 5.
Not too far behind are the men and women aged 21-30, with a seven percent difference. Skoda is also the first car manufacturer in the Top 5 with a statistically relevant number of men under 21 who bought a policy.
Volkswagen has one of the closest spreads in policy holders for men and women. Across all the age ranges, the percentages for men and women who bought Volkswagen GAP Insurance policies are strikingly similar. Under 20s are identical at 2%, as are the 40-49s at 24%, with the remaining age groups not diverging from each other more than 6%. Interestingly the one age group that does have a wide gap is the 30-39 group. Men in that age range accounted for 28% of overall sales, with women making up 22%.
In stark contrast, out of all the car manufacturers in our Top 5, Suzuki has the broadest spread in policyholders for men and women. There is an 18% difference between male and female policy holders aged 20-29, with women making up 31% of policy holders, compared to just 13% of men. There are similar gulfs in the sexes for 40-49 year olds, with women making 12% of overall policy holders, compared to 21% of men for that age group.
Summary
Looking at the overall data, it’s interesting to see how women seem to be more aware of the benefits of GAP insurance at a younger age, compared to their male counterparts. It isn’t until men reach their fifties that they consistently start being the largest demographic of GAP Insurance policy holders… which is interesting, as men are traditionally thought to be more likely to protect their investment.
Click here to read more: Statistics ALA Connect.
