Ms Scarr said: 'We welcome the continuing development of safety-driven vehicle technologies to assist drivers. From seat-belts through to crumple zones, airbags and now advanced driver assistance systems, the benefits are proven. However, technology is just one side of the coin and the driver must not get lazy, relying upon such assistance alone to keep him/her safe and accident free. It is imperative that good driving skills and habits continue to be promoted and encouraged and instances of bad driving highlighted and corrected.’

Recent research by Arval has identified that use of technology aids such as parking sensors has led to a 25% reduction in reported incidents across the Arval fleet in the last two years. However, Ms Scarr added: 'An action such as reverse parking is a case in point where drivers still need to take care to understand and appreciate the skills involved in such a manoeuvre. It is an excellent skill to attain for convenient and safe parking, but sadly the repeated incidents of minor bumps and collisions reported by fleets and insurance companies testify that it is still causing problems – despite parking sensors and other aids.’

She concluded: ‘A focus on driver education and skill enhancement, supported by safety technologies, should continue to pave the way to ongoing reductions in incident numbers ranging from small problems to major accidents. Good driver habits and vehicle safety devices need to co-exist and technology should not become the dominant force at the expense of safe and appropriate driver behaviour.’