Friday 13th may bring increased danger for motorists

Youi is urging drivers to take extra care on the roads today. Photo / Paul Taylor

Take care while venturing out on the roads today: Friday the 13th.

According to car insurance provider Youi, most car crashes in New Zealand happen on Fridays between 2pm and 6pm.

Youi New Zealand chief executive Frank Costigan said this was because of the higher volumes of traffic on the roads.

"Driver inattention is a major factor in road crashes and may also be a further contributing factor in the increased number of Friday crashes as many people at the end of their working week may be thinking about their weekend plans and not their driving," Costigan said.

Youi's insurance claims accident frequency study reveals crashes happening on the weekends are significantly more severe than on week days, and damage to cars on a Friday night, Saturday or Sunday is 16.8 per cent greater than other days.

The research shows night-time driving can be challenging for many motorists, as crash damage between 8pm and 7am is more than 50 per cent higher than during day light hours - the same for all days.

"Friday nights and the weekends are busy social times when we often get out and about with friends and family," Costigan said.

"Unfortunately, there's increased road safety dangers associated with this as our research showed 39.8 per cent of crashes on a Friday night and across weekends involved passengers, a 46.9 per cent increase on other days of the week."

Today's date is considered by many as "unlucky", so Youi is urging drivers to take extra care on the roads.