Fire engines
should be yellow, says yesinsurance.co.uk
Released
on: November 16, 2007, 2:47 am
Press
Release Author: yesinsurance
Industry:
Automotive
Press
Release Summary: yesinsurance.co.uk launch call for UK fire engines
to be painted yellow rather than red
Press
Release Body: A call for UK fire engines to be painted yellow rather
than red has been issued by insurance provider yesinsurance.co.uk.
The
move, which follows research on car colours conducted by yesinsurance.co.uk
at the end of last year, also points to a number of other studies
which have indicated that vehicles painted with darker colours such
as red are often less visible than those which are yellow.
Lime
yellow is highlighted by the insurance
provider as one of the safest colours, because of its ability
to be more easily spotted during both the day and at night, as well
as in snowy conditions when white vehicles are less noticeable.
Over
recent years there have been two major scientific investigations
of the relationship between car colour and safety (Lardelli-Claret
2002 and Furness et al 2003). Whilst neither was able to propose
the selection of one particular colour as the unambiguous best choice
for safety, the results did point towards lighter colours such as
white and yellow being safer than dark colours.
A
separate study of fire fighting equipment (Schuman 1991) stated
that red, which is perceived as black at night, is one of the least
visible of vehicle colours. The report also pointed out that people
have particularly poor peripheral detection of red shades.
Research
conducted in September 2006 by yesinsurance
among 4,000 motorists also indicated that red was considered to
be the most dangerous colour to paint a vehicle.
“Over
a third of respondents in our research picked red as the riskiest
colour to paint a car, and almost as many chose black,” said
Paul Purdy, of yesinsurance.co.uk.
“From
a car insurance
point of view we make no distinctions on colour, but where emergency
vehicles are concerned research seems to indicate that lime yellow
is the most visible colour,” said Paul Purdy.
The
preference for lime yellow colouring was also supported by research
published in 1995 by Solomon and King, which analysed accident data
of different coloured fire vehicles over a four year period in Dallas,
USA.
Whilst
reflective markings and flashing lights help to highlight emergency
vehicles, yesinsurance says that vehicle colour also plays an important
role in defining the exact position and shape of a fast moving large
vehicle – something which is particularly important for fire
engines.
However,
some people may resist the move away from red, which is traditionally
seen as the appropriate colour for fire vehicles.
“I
must admit that red fire engines do tend to look more powerful and
macho than those which are painted yellow, but where safety is concerned
we really need to consider which is better for visibility,”
said Paul Purdy.
Yesinsurance.co.uk
specialises in providing insurance for cars that are over five years
old.
– E N D S –
Editors notes.
- yesinsurance.co.uk is a trading name of yesinsurance
Services Limited, which is authorised and regulated by
the Financial Services Authority
- Insurance policies provided online at www.yesinsurance.co.uk
are designed to provide competitive car insurance deals for drivers
with cars or vans that are over 5 years old, which account for around
60% of all cars currently on the road, as well as home insurance
and van insurance
policies.
References:
A report on car colour and safety from the AAA Foundation
for Traffic Safety, an American charity and research organisation,
which contains further information on the Llardelli-Claret, Furness,
and Schuman research projects, can be found at: www.aaafoundation.org/pdf/CarColorAndSafety.pdf
A
summary of the Solomon and King study on fire engine accidents can
be found at: www.psychologymatters.org/solomon.html
Web
Site: http://www.yesinsurance.co.uk/
Contact
Details: For further information, please contact:
yesinsurance PR contact:
Paul Purdy
yesinsurance.co.uk
Lakeside House
Hebble Brook Business Park
Hays lane
Halifax
West Yorkshire
HX2 8UL
Tel: 01422 232528
http://www.yesinsurance.co.uk/
Registered number: 5545310 England.
Registered Office: As above
Authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority
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