Dubai: Some people are forced to hit the speed limit once in a while for reasons beyond their control, but many in the UAE are doing it on purpose, for sheer fun.

According to a new study commissioned by global insurer Zurich and RoadSafetyUAE.com, which looks at the leading causes of rush driving in the UAE, nearly one in five (18 per cent) of residents in the country admitted they are guilty of exceeding the official maximum enforced speed limit, with five per cent saying they have driven at speeds between 180 and 260 kilometres per hour.

When asked what led them to violate speed limits, more than half (53 per cent) said they do it for fun, or to impress other motorists on the road. The majority (67 per cent), however, said they tend to ignore speed limits when they are running late, while 45 per cent admitted that they do it purely out of habit.

“Despite widespread awareness of the UAE’s driving rules, far too many motorists seem to be consciously ignoring the dangers of speeding,” said Thomas Edelmann, founder of RoadSafetyUAE.com.

Several studies have shown that over speeding is one of the leading causes of road accidents, which claimed 147  lives in the UAE during the first three months of the year.

Among the accidents recorded in the country during the same period, 83 cases or 6.74 per cent were blamed on speeding.

"Speeding causes about twice as many deaths as fatigued-related crashes, Speeding is involved in about 40 per cent of road deaths," according to the Australian state New South Wales on its website.

Majority

In Zurich's study, however, the majority of UAE residents (82 per cent) claimed they don't drive past 140 k ilometres per hour.

Among those who violate the speed limits, (39 per cent) said they do it because they know where the speed cameras are located.

Others (27 per cent) tend to over speed  because they think the roads are designed for fast cars, while many more (22 per cent) do it because the want to test how far their vehicles can go.

About two in ten (21 per cent) are guilty of the same act because they believe over speeding is "culturally accepted" in the country.

A smal number of drivers (15 per cent) said they violate speed limits because they think they can get away with it, while 5 per cent said they do it because they can afford to pay for the traffic fine.