Male teenage drivers are most likely to be acting recklessly behind the wheel in the early hours.

This is particularly true if they’re driving a Ford Transit van.

The conclusions are drawn from new research by Adrian Flux Insurance.

White van man junior

The likelihood of drivers aged 17 to 19 speeding is 289% greater if they’re driving a Transit compared to other popular mass-market vehicles.

It’s between the hours of midnight and 6am when the worst behaviour is usually recorded when it comes to young males

This research shows males drive 50% more often between the hours of midnight and 6am than women, and 12% more often between 10pm and midnight.

The data is taken from over 60,000 daily journeys by those in their first two years of driving.

The number of miles driven in the vans may affect the figure but it’s a standout one nonetheless.

Male drivers in a Fiat Punto (90%) and Seat Ibiza (84%) are the next most likely offenders while, interestingly, Vauxhall Corsa drivers are better than the average by nearly 10%.

For women, the standout vehicle for speeding is the Ford Ka (123%) while, once again, the Corsa (13%) and the Volkswagen Polo (22%) show significantly fewer speeding events.

Night driving

Men drive 50% more often during that time period than women.

They also have 60% more speeding events.

This represents a 22% increase in driving habits between 10pm and midnight.

It also finds that females drive less often and less quickly at night.

The findings resulted from research by Adrian Flux into the driving habits of its black box policyholders.

Boys will be boys

“This data does little to shatter the stereotypes that exist around night-time boy racers,” said Gerry Bucke, the company’s general manager.

“We can’t escape the fact that when the roads are empty, some people can tend to get a heavy right foot. Analysing our records shows that this is still the case for certain drivers, especially young males.

The FluxScore app with Adrian Flux black box insurance policies will send warnings about speeding and other bad habits. This is common with most black box insurance policies and helps keep prices down, as well as poor driving habits.

“While we’d much prefer people to stick to the speed limit in the first place, the good news is that we are helping to eradicate poor behaviour, even if it was caused by a mistake, as quickly as possible.”

Calming corsa

Young males are least likely to feel the need to speed in a Vauxhall Corsa.

Meanwhile, women are most likely to put their foot down in a Ford Ka and least likely in a Volkswagen Polo.

Read the full report to see how other makes and models fare and a detailed analysis of the time that young men and women drive.