“Partner pressure” increase risk of drivers having accident
The research also found that “partner pressure” made motorists feel twice as rushed, pushing up the risk of them having an accident.
The research found that having any passenger on board made drivers more stressed but this increased if it was their husband, wife, boyfriend or girlfriend in the car.
Women suffer more from stress over having their partner on board – only 32% of women said they felt relaxed in this situation, compared to 43% of men.
Meanwhile children were also found to be a cause of stress, with only a quarter of women and a third of men feeling calm with their own children as passengers.
Times of day that add to stress were also covered by the research and included commuting to and from work, travelling to appointments such as visiting the doctor and driving children to school.
Jon Dye, CEO of Allianz Insurance said: ‘The tales of back seat drivers and in-car arguments we’re all so familiar with, cause stress and distraction when drivers should be feeling calm and focused.
‘It’s important that motorists and their partners are aware of the risks a stressful environment in a vehicle can create.’