Friday the 13th and Unlucky New Cars
Friday the 13th is the equivalent of Marmite, some people love it and others hate it. Some people see it as a day of staying at home, wrapped in pillows and taking care that no 'Final Destination' style accidents occur. Others see it as simply another day of the year, (a select few commemorate the death of Tupac Shakur, RIP Pac).
Whatever camp you fall in, whether you're a believer of bad luck or somebody who just likes to watch others squirm, you'll hopefully enjoy the information that we've compiled for you.
Insurance company Norwich Union did a survey a few years back and found that on Friday the 13th claims for accidents were actually a large amount higher than on average. The kicker to this little statistic is that the number of accidents reported was 13% more. Scary business, or just a coincidence?
A number of different lists have been created about the most 'unlucky' cars when it comes to accidents. The Honda FR-V always seems to be residing at the top of the list, with an accident claim rate of 18.4% (or one in five owners). You'd have to pay us to get in that bad boy; we're a superstitious lot here at Oneswoop. We happen to suffer from 'friggatriskaidekaphobia', the phobia of Friday the 13th (if you don't believe us, go look it up).
For some people, it can be a day that's both lucky and unlucky. An extraordinary piece of news was published in the Independent in 2003, which told the story of one Terry Wallis. He and two of his friends were riding in a pick-up truck over a bridge, when suddenly they drove off a bridge.
One of them tragically died, the other escaped unscathed; Mr. Wallis, however, was left in a coma (and paralysed from the neck down). After 19 years of inactivity he finally woke up, shaking his head and grunting.
His family (who were in the room) was being told how much his medical bills added up to. Perhaps Mr. Wallis had a little problem with the staggering bills! Remarkably, he had entered and awoken from his coma on a Friday the 13th, both 19 years apart. Unlucky for some, lucky for others, both for Terry Wallis.
Colour seems to play a large role in the bad luck of cars. Several studies and surveys have shown that grey cars seem to have the highest accident rate, with green coming a close second. There are actually more blue cars on the road than any other colour, yet they're near the bottom of the 'accident likelihood' chart.
If you've learned anything from this post, it's that you shouldn't drive a grey Honda FR-V on Friday the 13th. Or, if you're not into all that superstition and voodoo, we hope that you've at least enjoyed the read.
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Written by Jake Higginson.