Study: Women better drivers -- by a lot

NEW YORK, May 21 (UPI) -- A study of traffic violations, collisions and insurance statistics of U.S. men and women found women were much better drivers, insurance experts said.

James Shaffer, chief executive officer of 4AutoInsuranceQuote.com said about 80 percent of all fatal and serious U.S. car crashes were caused by male drivers.

The study found women were 27 percent less likely than men to cause crashes, while men had higher traffic violations in almost every single category -- reckless driving, failure to yield, seat belt violations or speeding.

For more serious infractions such as driving under the influence and driving while intoxicated, male violators outnumbered females 3-to-1, Shaffer said.

"As a man, it's tough to admit, but if you look at the statistics, females are better drivers ... by a long shot! It's almost scary how bad the average American man is at driving," Shaffer said in a statement. "Blame it on whatever you want -- high testosterone, higher propensity to take risks, or higher levels of aggression, but the fact remains -- men simply make too many mistakes behind the wheel."

4AutoInsuranceQuote.com found the average six month policy for a man costs $765 while it costs $698 for a woman, Shaffer said.