“Perk” car drivers are racking up higher accident costs than their commercial counterparts, according to new research from LeasePlan, which says that it’s the former who need the most help when it comes to improving their behaviour on the roads.

The firm’s analysis of over 28,000 drivers found that perk drivers racked up an average of £291 per head in accident costs each year, significantly more than the £182 accrued by commercial vehicle drivers. The findings were similar for out-of-contract maintenance costs, where the average perk driver accumulated £145 in maintenance costs annually, compared to a commercial vehicle driver at £98. This is despite the two groups averaging a similar number of miles driven each year: 23,309 and 25,795 respectively.

However, one area in which the commercial vehicle drivers did attract higher costs was in traffic violations and fines, averaging £29 per year. Perk drivers were less likely to incur fines, with the average for this group standing at £22.

Fleet drivers in the IT and leisure sectors incurred the highest fines (£48 a year on average) whilst motorists working in financial services (£12) and those working in Government (£7) received the lowest.

Across the drivers analysed the worst 20% of all drivers accounted for 76% of the total costs incurred, amounting to £8.5m in unforeseen fleet costs. This figure suggests that there are significant potential savings to be made if driver behaviour can be addressed.