A gift for all female Members whose cars break down this Valentine’s Day
The AA is doing its bit for romance this St. Valentine’s Day... all female members who use the AA Breakdown service next Monday will receive a Rose and a box of Lir chocolates from their gallant AA Patrol.
“We hope our Members will like the gesture and that it will cheer them up after their car breaks down.” Says Director of Policy Conor Faughnan.
But there is a safe driving message to go along with the romance...
AA research has shown that 18% of women regularly wear high heels while driving, and that’s a habit the AA wants to encourage them to break.
This Valentine’s Day the entire AA Rescue fleet will take to the roads with vans full of mouth watering hand finished Lir chocolates and a supply of red roses a bid to charm any female AA Members who find themselves broken down across the country.
Whether it’s a flat battery, puncture or something more complicated they needn’t despair. Not only will a man in uniform come to their aid, they’ll also get an entire box of Lir’s Ultimate Indulgence Chocolate Collection to tantalise their taste buds and a Red Rose to make them smile. The AA Customer Care Centre is gearing up for a slew of complaints from jealous other-halves!
“It is a nice gift and we hope people will enjoy it, but there is a more serious road safety message as well.” Says Faughnan. “Females are generally lower risk than males but that doesn’t mean that their driving is perfect.”
18% of women drive in high-heels on a regular basis
The AA is urging female motorists sporting high heels this Valentine’s Day to switch to their flats before taking to the roads. In an AA Rescue survey of more than 8,500 women drivers, 17.8% admitted to driving in high heels on a regular basis. Just 35% of respondents admitted to never having worn heels behind the wheel. Females also admitted to doing their make-up in the driver’s seat (23%).
Worse still, 10% of women surveyed admitted to taking out their nail polish to touch up their nails while in charge of a vehicle. 10% also confessed to having changed their outfit at some point while driving.
“Whatever your plans are this Valentine’s Day we want to make sure you get there safely.” Says Faughnan. “Male or female, proper footwear is an absolute must. All it takes for a crash or near miss to happen is for your foot to slip off the pedal in a pair of flip flops or stilettos.”
“We recommend that you have a simple pair of good flat shoes for driving in your car. When you get where you are going there will be plenty of time to transform your feet and slip on the gorgeous Manolos. Knock ‘em dead when you get there, not before!”
Ends
Notes to the Editor;
Fig. 1 How often female drivers indicated they do the following activities while driving (Based on 8691 responses)
| |
Daily |
Regularly |
Seldom |
Occasionally |
Never |
Does not apply to me |
| Wear high heels |
4.0% |
13.8% |
10.7% |
30.9% |
35.2% |
5.4% |
| Brush their hair |
0.6% |
1.5% |
3.2% |
8.3% |
79.5% |
6.9% |
| Do their make up |
0.9% |
5.5% |
4.1% |
12.5% |
72.2% |
4.8% |
| Paint their nails |
0.0% |
0.2% |
1.4% |
8.3% |
84.3% |
5.8% |
| Change their clothes |
0.3% |
0.1% |
0.9% |
8.7% |
87.1% |
2.9% |
