Motorcyclists are ‘More attractive than drivers’ according to research study

Motorcyclists are ‘More attractive than drivers’ according to research study.

People who wear clothing associated with motorcycling are seen as more attractive, daring, adventurous and fun, new research has found.

The study from one of the UK and Ireland’s leading motorcycle insurance brokers, Carole Nash, asked over 1,000 adults to rate the looks of the opposite sex when dressed as bikers, compared to plain driving attire.

The aim of the experiment was to attempt to change perceptions of how bikers are viewed and to overturn any negative stereotypes. In previous research by the insurance broker, bikers beat drivers in 76% of tests when going head to head about road and safety knowledge. To explore the benefits of biking further, this study set out to see if motorcyclists are also viewed as more attractive than their four wheeled counterparts.

In five out of six cases, members of the public dressed as motorcyclists were voted as more desirable than when dressed as drivers, making biking leathers and boots the go-to garments for those wanting to impress.

It’s not just levels of attractiveness which came out in favour of motorcyclists as riders are also seen to have positive personality traits. The results showed that people who own a motorbike are viewed as adventurous by a third of the opposite sex (34%), closely followed by daring (28%) and fun (26%).

The research further revealed that one in four males would pretend they owned a motorbike,  with almost a third (31%) also saying they would go the whole way and learn to ride one if they knew it would impress a potential partner.

Interestingly, men feel more comfortable than women at getting on the back of a member of the opposite sex’s motorbike, with almost half (44%) of males saying they would compared to 34% of females.

The over 65s have the biggest sense of adventure, as when looking at age it appears the older you are the more likely you are to hop onto the back of someone’s motorbike. 44% of 65+ year olds were more than happy to ride pillion compared to just 24% of 18-24 year olds.

However, when it comes to attractiveness, it is the 25 to 34 year olds who are most likely to find a biker easier on the eye (23%) compared to 10% of 55 to 64 year olds.

Rebecca Donohue, Head of Marketing at Carole Nash, said: “We wanted to launch a campaign to discover what the public really thinks of bikers. To dispel the stereotype that can sometimes be associated with bikers and biking.

“Our previous research has proven that bikers know their road laws better than drivers. Now, the discovery that bikers are not only more road aware, but that they are actually viewed as more attractive than drivers and are seen as fun and adventurous, really allows us to celebrate the positive side of biking.

“Behind the leathers and tough boots, it’s great to see that many people agree with us that bikers are best.

“We’ve already developed ‘Bikers Only’ car insurance on the back of previous research that showed bikers make safer drivers – so if you’re a biker looking to insure your car we can guarantee to beat your car insurance renewal***”.

Steve Kenward, CEO of the Motorcycle Industry Association, added: “It’s great that Carole Nash is putting a positive focus on biking and bikers with this study. Its research on bikers’ road knowledge last year was very thought-provoking and led to the development of a great policy offering by them – which I believe contributed towards some prestigious awards and commendations.

“Even though this research is light-hearted, it does help to position bikers in a positive light and challenges outdated stereotypes, giving weight to our cause to get more people out onto motorcycles and scooters.”

To see more photos used in the study, and read the full report, head over to the Carole Nash website https://www.carolenash.com/news/1669-motorbike-riders-viewed-more-attractive-than-drivers