Have you got a 'Baby on Board' sticker in your back window, a crucifix on your bootlid, or perhaps a sticker on your back bumper? Well new research suggests that you're more likely to be injured or killed in a car accident.
A new report from the Liverpool Insurance Establishment (LIE) has revealed that cars with a sign in the back window are up to 80 per cent more likely to be involved in a crash than cars which have not been personalised.
The study has found that cars with an Ichthus fish are up to 74 per cent more likely to be involved in a crash, while cars fitted with 'Hello Kitty' stickers are more than 240 per cent likely to be involved in an incident which causes serious injury or death.
It was also revealed that between 2001 and 2012, eleven drivers were decapitated by improperly secured nodding dogs flying forwards in the event of a crash and hitting them on the back of the head.
LIE president, Michael Davis, commented on the findings, saying: "Drivers who opt to personalise their cars with religious symbols and signs alerting other drivers to the fact they have an infant on board are asking for trouble, but while we can see a link between car personalisation and grizzly death, it is not clear whether there is a causal link.
"It could just be that the type of prat who puts a 'Dad's Taxi' sticker in the back of his car is fundamentally too stupid to control a motor vehicle on the public highway."
(First published 1 April 2013)
