(Tue 23 May 06)

Almost half of all British drivers are suffering from a painful new medical condition experts are calling Repetitive Driving Injury (RDI), caused by poor driving posture, according to eBay Motors. Ergonomics experts warn many drivers are risking serious long term muscle, joint and spinal injuries as a quarter of motorists admit they don't know how to correctly adjust their car seats for comfort and safety.

According to the new study, the five most common Repetitive Driving Injuries are foot cramp (suffered by 81% of the UK), lumbar pain (74%), stiff neck (74%), side ache (74%), and headache/eye strain (73%).  Almost two million British drivers start to suffer from these after just fifteen minutes driving with 9% of drivers experiencing symptoms after driving just 22 miles.

"Despite eight out of ten drivers having suffered from RDI's, only one in five (21%) consider car comfort an important factor when purchasing a car," said Charlie Coney of eBay Motors. "Choosing the car best suited to their driving style should be an increased priority for all car buyers to avoid these symptoms."

Ergonomics expert Professor Mark Porter of Loughborough University has identified the four most common driving positions and their related problems. The results reveal  we are a nation of  'Racers', 'Pimps', 'Multi-taskers' and 'Rollercoasters'.

A racer can be identified with straight arms, the seat reclined, straight legs, and a low driving position.Injuries can include side aches and lumbar pain. The pimp has his seat inclined, his arm on window ledge or outside window, and one hand on wheel. Injuries include arm and shoulder ache from resting on the window ledge. Male drivers aged 25-35 year old are most likely to be pimps behind the wheel.

Rollercoaster drivers account for more than 37% of the population and can be is seen leaning forward and sitting upright, seat forward, and with bent legs and bent arms. Injuries include shoulder pain, neck strain, leg cramp and side ache. Finally, multitaskers have straight back, arms bent, one hand on gear stick. 45% of mobile office workers are multitaskers and their injuries include headaches and eye strain, feet cramp, and a pain in coccyx.

Professor Mark Porter advises: "the greater the number of  adjustable features within a car, the greater the likelihood of achieving a comfortable driving posture.

"Important adjustments include an in/out and up/down steering wheel and a seat with independent height and cushion tilt so you can set the height of the seat for headroom/vision and then control the cushion angle for ease of pedal operation & comfort."

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