Road Reputations Report: The Global Verdict on Driving Stereotypes

Prejudging a driver’s motoring ability, or even their personality, based on what car they drive has been a cultural phenomenon for at least 50 years. The 1960s saw the start of car manufacturers leaning into personality-driven marketing, and by the 1980s the general public had started to draw their own conclusions about drivers of certain cars based on both their own experiences but also from popular TV shows and movies.  

As car insurance experts, we’re curious to uncover the latest driver stereotypes, especially with social media now having a huge impact on what we think about different car brands.  

We undertook a global research project to reveal the assumptions that drivers in different countries around the world make about personality, motoring skills, and road safety based on the kind of car people drive, and cross referenced with our own car insurance data to see if there is any truth in the public’s preconceptions. 

Our international survey of nearly 5,000 motorists in over 20 countries reveals which car brands the world thinks are driven by the safest and most dangerous drivers. Find out more in our Road Reputations Report below. 

Road Reputations Report contents: 

1. The world’s most dangerous drivers, by brand 

2. The world’s safest drivers, by brand 

3. The cars the world thinks are coolest, and least cool 

4. Driver’s personality stereotypes, by brand 

5. Methodology

Most dangerous drivers, based on brand reputation 

Drivers with the most dangerous habits, according to global motorists 

BMW drivers’ reputation is unfair  

Participants of our study ranked drivers of BMWs as most likely to drive too fast, drive too aggressively, and drive without signalling. BMW drivers also appear in the bad parker rankings, taking fourth place behind drivers of Ford and Hyundai cars.  

However, whilst BMW drivers appear at the top of most of our bad driving habit categories, it’s likely BMW drivers are being unfairly judged. According to our own car insurance data, since the start of 2025, BMW drivers have on average fewer penalty points on their licence than Tesla, Saab, or Land Rover drivers. BMW drivers also on average have accumulated fewer driving offences than Volkswagen, Audi, or Vauxhall drivers. And despite having a reputation for driving too fast, according to our speeding offence data, BMW drivers are not the brand who come first in the speeding offence driver rankings. BMW drivers make up 2.5% of speeding offences declared on our policy records; Honda, Mercedes-Benz, and Volkswagen drivers are more likely to have speeding offences (2.7%) and Audi drivers are the most likely (2.8%). 

Tesla drivers rated as poorest parkers 

Global motorists believe Tesla drivers are the world’s worst parkers and also included them in the top five motorists for driving too fast, too aggressively and without indicating. With four mentions in the rankings, Tesla is the second most common brand considered as being driven by dangerous drivers (after BMW), with Audi, Mercedes-Benz, and Ford all tying third with three mentions each.  

Tesla’s reputation as a status symbol, may be influencing people’s opinions about Tesla drivers. Our own data shows that 25% of drivers with more than average driving offences own a Tesla, with drivers of the electric car brand making up 1.8% of drivers with speeding offences. 

Keep up Kia 

Whilst driving too fast is clearly a marker of dangerous driving, sometimes driving too slowly can also be a hazard. According to motorists the world over, Kia drivers are most likely to be thought of as driving dangerously slowly However, according to our records, Kia drivers may be speedier than their reputation suggests. Kia drivers make up 2.2% of speeding offences declared on our policy records, putting them in top 15 brands of drivers who have the most speeding offences. 

Safest drivers, based on brand reputation

Drivers with the safest habits, according to global motorists 

Volvo pioneered safety features in their models from the very start; in 1944 they introduced laminated windscreen glass and in 1959 they launched the first three-point seat belt. The results of our study show that the manufacturer's focus on safety has been projected on to its drivers, with Volvo drivers achieving five mentions in the ‘Safest Drivers’ rankings and coming first in three of the safe driving habit categories: ‘Good At Parking’, ‘Uses Signals/Indicators Properly’, and ‘Courteous Driving’.  

The next brand that motorists around the world believe attract safe drivers is Toyota, who top the categories for ‘Drives at a Safe Speed’ and ‘Lets Other Drivers Merge’. Toyota’s design, like Volvo, also invests a lot in safety features, which could again be why their drivers are viewed as sensible and safe. Toyota drivers also get a nod in the ‘Courteous and Polite’ and ‘Correct Signalling’ categories. Whilst Hyundai drivers don’t come first in any categories, they do appear in the top five for all but one of the safe driving habit categories, reflecting the brand’s manufacturing reputation for reliable and trustworthy vehicles.  

Volvo drivers certainly look to be less risky to insure, and so presumably safer drivers, when we study this year’s average insurance premiums by brand. Despite typically having a higher car value than a Toyota or a Hyundai, Volvo drivers have the lowest insurance premiums of the three brands: Volvo drivers’ insurance premium on average is £608; Hyundai drivers are about £50 more a year at £660 on average; Toyota drivers come with an average annual premium of £795, suggesting that they are risker drivers to insure.  

Which car brands the world thinks are coolest

Coolest and least cool car brands, according to global motorists 

BMW considered one of the coolest car brands in the world – but Mercedes-Benz takes the crown 

BMW and Mercedes-Benz have long been rivals in the premium auto marketplace, the Nike and Adidas of the motoring world, and our latest research shows a slight tip in the scales currently in Mercedes-Benz' favour.  

In a previous study, we found that the most common ‘first car’ among rich and famous influencers is a Mercedes-Benz, which could be why the brand has inched forward in the cool stakes. Mercedes-Benz top the ‘Coolest’ list in sixteen of the twenty countries surveyed, with BMW taking the four remaining top spots (#1 in Brazil, India, Italy and Japan) but coming out as the ‘Least Cool Car Brand’ in Poland. 

Tesla makes an appearance in fourth place in the global ‘Coolest Car Brand’ rankings but comes first in the global ‘Least Cool Car Brand’ rankings, showing a strong split in opinion. This is likely due to the public’s differing views on electric cars, Tesla’s proposition as a premium high-end brand, and its infamous founder, Elon Musk. Telsa is regarded as the ‘Least Cool Car Brand’ in Canada, Australia and New Zealand.  

Driver personality stereotypes, by brand

Assumptions the world makes about different drivers 

When asked to share what personality assumptions they make on people based on the car they drive, our study respondents admitted to a mix of flattering and less flattering stereotypes. Drivers of cars with a higher price tag, such as Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Tesla, are assumed by others to be ‘flashy’ - yet participants also credited drivers of these cars with more positive qualities as well, ranking them as ‘confident’, ‘stylish’ and ‘cultured’. 

Toyota and Volvo are the brands our study participants assumed are most likely to be driven by practical and sensible people; and the global preconception of Hyundai drivers is that they are modest and humble.  

Methodology

Methodology outline 

A global survey of 4,800 respondents was conducted by market research platform Prolific across 20 countries who have a high percentage of motor vehicles per capita. Each country had a minimum of 200 respondents, and each country's survey questions were tailored to include the emerging and biggest selling car brands within that country’s market in recent years. Data correct as of August 2025. 

Data sources 

Data on penalty points, offences and car brands and how these affect average annual insurance premiums have been sourced from information for policies purchased through MoneySuperMarket between 1/01/25 and 21/08/25