Professions speeding towards pricey premiums

Adventurous army officers appear the hastiest behind the wheel with more than a quarter admitting to speeding in the last five years when they applied for car insurance through moneysupermarket.com.

At the other end of the scale, au pairs are more cautious with fewer than two per cent caught breaking the speed limit; which is reassuring considering the nature of their profession.

The research, by the UK's leading price comparison site, is based on 12 million quotes and shows drivers with high-powered, pressure-driven jobs are amongst the worst offenders, with over a fifth of surgeons and barristers admitting to breaking the limit. Speeding drivers should be cautious as two convictions for driving too fast will typically raise motor insurance premiums by almost 20 per cent for a male driver and 10 per cent for a female driver.

Peter Gerrard, head of insurance research at moneysupermarket.com, added: "As a reflection on their adrenaline fuelled and active profession, army officers are most likely to be caught hurtling down the motorway; for them two speeding convictions could raise their premium by a third (34 per cent). However, it is strange to see that a fifth of masseurs are likely to speed - what a contradiction to their calming career."

Worryingly, Brits with jobs that involve flying appear less comfortable on the roads and have difficulty to sticking to the speed limits. Around one in five pilots, air traffic controllers and flying instructors are likely to get caught driving over the speed limit.

Less pressure-driven professions such as cobblers and ice cream vendors feature amongst those least likely to get caught speeding. Reflecting their therapeutic approach; beauty and health professionals seem to keep their relaxed attitude while driving with only three per cent of dermatologists and four per cent of herbalists likely to break the speeding rules.

Peter Gerrard added: "Our research reflects the trend in the motor insurance industry that people's professions can be reflected in the cost of their premiums. However this isn't always the case and when an insurer is building a premium there are still many other variables which determine the amount charged".