Most of us will prefer driving in the summer to any other time of the year – the bright nights, the hot days, no rain or snow to contend with, and of course, glorious sunshine beaming down on us, it certainly is much better than driving during the winter months.

However one aspect of summer driving many people will be aware of is the sudden onset of hay fever. Hay fever is an allergic reaction to pollen, which tends to be at it’s highest volume during the summer months. Approximately one in five people suffers with severe hay fever, although many more may experience mild to uncomfortable symptoms of this.

It has been suggested that driving with hay fever can impair your driving skills just as much as driving under the influence of alcohol – not only can it cause itchy and tired eyes, a runny nose, and fits of uncontrollable sneezing, which can be especially hazardous when behind the wheel, but it is also reported to have a negative effect on cognitive functions such as memory and concentration – which pose a risk to any driver as well as those in the same car or around them.

A recent study at the University of Maastricht in the Netherlands has concluded that drivers suffering from hay fever show symptoms similar to those in drivers after two to three units of alcohol – which is over the legal alcohol limit when driving on UK roads.

If you do suffer from hay fever, be advised to be on alert this summer. Whilst hay fever treatment may help to temporarily relieve the symptoms, they are also known to cause drowsiness and fatigue in users, so do take these with caution. If in doubt, do not get behind the wheel until the symptoms have cleared up.

What are your thoughts on this article? Do you or any drivers you know suffer from hay fever, and does this impair your driving ability? Let us know in the comments section below!

Safe driving from Britannia!

The family of a teenager who suffered life-changing injuries when a car went through a red light and knocked her down are calling for changes to made to the law after the driver merely faces a fine and points on his licence.

The crash left Miriam Parker, then 17, was left with severe brain injury and reduced mobility. The collision occurred at a pelican crossing in Selsdon Park Road, South Croydon, on New Years Day. Parker was left in a coma for a month and, despite defying doctors’ warnings she might die, will need care for the rest of her life.

The driver, from Selsdon, last month admitted to driving without due care and attention – a charge that means he may not lose his licence. A spokeswoman for the Crown Prosecution Service highlighted that the law only considers the standard of the defendant’s driving rather than the consequences of their actions which is why the driver could not be convicted of dangerous driving.

Parker and her mother will need to be rehoused by Sutton Council since the flat they currently live in are now unsuitable due to the block’s concrete stairs.

What are your thoughts on this article? Send your views to Britannia Driving School by using the comments link below:

Here at Britannia we like to see all driving students succeed. We encourage and praise them when they do well, and we help them to move past any minor mistakes they may make, helping them on their journey to become better drivers, and not to focus on their errors.

However sometimes, exceptions do have to be made.

Luckily this was not a student of Britannia Driving School, but rather a peer from across the pond – a USA Driving pupil, on their FIRST DRIVING LESSON, who managed to roll the car onto its roof.

In a similar fashion to last summer, when we wrote about the Worst Driving Test Ever, this pupil will most likely be hanging their head in shame after somehow flipping the car upside down during their first hour behind the wheel. The student, from Waltham, Massachusetts, lost control of the vehicle in a residential area, hit a tree, and simultaneously performed an unintentional aerial U-turn, leaving the car stranded on its roof until Police arrived at the scene.

Luckily the pupil and his instructor escaped unharmed – but he may still be several lessons away from passing his test.

Your first lesson may not have gone too well, with you probably stalling, or even scraping the bumper against the kerb – but take solace in the fact that it could have gone much worse.

Safe driving from Britannia!

What are your thoughts on this article? Do you know someone who has experienced a worse driving lesson than this?

Sound off in the comments section below!