New data reveals true story of UK’s female motorcycle and scooter riders

New data accessed from The Bike Insurer's database has revealed the most accurate picture to date of the UK's female motorcycle riders.

The number of women riding motorcycles in the UK is on the rise as modern motorcycles have been made more accessible and the motorcycle industry has worked hard to meet the demands of women riders.

Jade Isabelle, Commercial Director at The Bike Insurer said: "As more women take to riding motorcycles and scooters, we're interested in looking at who these women are and how we can help them achieve their cheapest insurance price in the easiest possible way. We welcome them all to the world of two wheels."

Motorcycle insurance quotes generated by female riders in the past 18 months were analysed from our quote data, with female riders making up 8 per cent of the total quotes made during the period.

All of the data analysed has been completely anonymised so actual customer information cannot be identified, but the information has still revealed an incredibly interesting snapshot of the UK's female motorcycle and scooter riders.

So complete is the data, we know female motorcyclists in the UK are most commonly to be seen riding the Honda CB125F, her name is most likely to be Sarah, and she's a student living at home in Surrey, or East or West Sussex.

Our data has revealed a fascinating and complete picture of a large amount of information about the women riding motorcycles and scooters in the UK; everything from the motorcycles they choose to ride, to the most common first names of those on two wheels.

The sample of data presented here was taken between May 1, 2017 and October 31, 2018 to ensure it's as up-to-date as possible with more than 23,000 female quotes sampled.

Most popular motorcycles among women

An overview of the top 20 bikes owned by female riders reveals the Honda CB125F is the most popular by almost double that of the second placed motorcycle; the Honda CBR125R. Honda dominates the top 10 bikes taking six of the top spots.

Honda UK's Motorcycle Business Planning Department Manager, Andy Mineyko, said: "It's great to see Honda is the leading manufacturer on the minds of female motorcyclists. We're proud to offer a broad range of models which women enjoy riding. In addition, we hope to play a part in growing the female rider community moving forward through the Honda School of Motorcycling and Just Ride."

British manufacturer Triumph is one of only two firms to sell enough bikes in the midsize category to reach the top 10 with the Triumph Bonneville T100 sixth best-selling. The Triumph Street Triple and Street Triple R feature in the top 25.

Triumph Motorcycles' Head of Brand Management, Miles Perkins said: "We certainly see many changes in the motorcycle market and the growing number of female riders is one of the key shifts we see as being a good sign for the future.

"We always try to listen to customers and have seen changes in the way people are using their bikes and what they want from a motorcycle, along with a shift in the general demographic of riders, including a pleasing increase in the number female riders coming into motorcycling. This one of the influences in the re-invigoration of our modern classic line-up in 2015.

"The Triumph Bonneville T100 has always been a popular motorcycle for all types of rider, particular those reasonably new to biking and for female riders. It's low seat height, easy handling and responsive performance and the ability for everyone to get both feet on the floor make it a really accessible way into biking. That's not just about the height; its more about giving them confidence and control.

"The work we have done on some of the modern classic range has been directly down to making motorcycles as appealing and accessible as possible and the rise in female riders who choose a Triumph potentially reflects that. Our Street Twin model is our biggest seller in the modern classic line-up and also has a greater number of female owners than any other Triumph."

Overview of the data

TOP 20 MOTORCYCLES AND SCOOTERS OWNED BY WOMEN

HONDACBF 125
HONDACBR 125 R
YAMAHAYBR-125
HONDAMSX 125
YAMAHAYBR 125 CUSTOM
TRIUMPHBONNEVILLE T100
KAWASAKIZX-6R
HONDAPCX 125 (11 HP)
HONDACG 125
HONDAVISION 110
HONDACB500X
YAMAHAYZF-R125
SUZUKISV 650 S (69 HP)
HONDAPCX 125 (11HP)
AJSMODENA 125
PIAGGIOZIP 50
SUZUKIGZ 125 MARAUDER
SUZUKIVANVAN 125
YAMAHANMAX 125
YAMAHAMT 125 ABS

TOP FIVE BIKES OWNED BY WOMEN OVER 125cc

TRIUMPHBONNEVILLE T100 (61)
KAWASAKIZX-6R
SUZUKISV 650 S (69 HP)
KAWASAKIER-6F
TRIUMPHSTREET TRIPLE R

TOP SELLING BIKES WITHIN EACH AGE BRACKET

Age bracketManufacturerModel
16DIRECT BIKESSPORTS DB50QT-11
17-24HONDACBF 125
25-34HONDACBF 125
35-44YAMAHAYBR-125
45-54TRIUMPHBONNEVILLE T100
55-64HONDACB500X
65+HONDAC90 SUPER CUB

TOP TEN NAMES OF WOMEN MOTORCYCLISTS

  • Sarah
  • Emma
  • Rebecca
  • Laura
  • Karen
  • Samantha
  • Julie
  • Claire
  • Nicola
  • Helen

TOP FIVE REGIONS FOR WOMEN MOTORCYCLE OWNERS AND AVERAGE AGE

1. Surrey, East and West Sussex, 35-years-old
2. East Anglia, 35-years-old
3. Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Bath/Bristol area, 35-years-old
4. Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire, 40-years-old
5. Greater Manchester, 33-years-old

ALL REGIONS FEMALE DATA

REGIONCOUNTY/COUNTIESAVERAGE AGE
East MidlandsDerbyshire and Nottinghamshire37
East MidlandsLeicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire40
East MidlandsLincolnshire37
East of EnglandBedfordshire and Hertfordshire34
East of EnglandEast Anglia35
East of EnglandEssex35
LondonInner London -- East35
LondonInner London -- West35
LondonOuter London -- East and North East34
LondonOuter London -- South35
LondonOuter London -- West and North West35
North EastNorthumberland and Tyne and Wear35
North EastTees Valley and Durham37
North WestCheshire36
North WestCumbria35
North WestGreater Manchester33
North WestLancashire35
North WestMerseyside35
Northern IrelandNorthern Ireland36
ScotlandEastern Scotland37
ScotlandHighlands and Islands38
ScotlandNorth Eastern Scotland38
ScotlandSouthern Scotland39
ScotlandWest Central Scotland36
South EastBerkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire34
South EastHampshire and Isle of Wight34
South EastKent35
South EastSurrey, East and West Sussex35
South WestCornwall and Isles of Scilly35
South WestDevon36
South WestDorset and Somerset36
South WestGloucestershire, Wiltshire and Bath/Bristol area35
WalesEast Wales35
WalesWest Wales36
West MidlandsHerefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire35
West MidlandsShropshire and Staffordshire34
West MidlandsWest Midlands33
Yorkshire and The HumberEast Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire36
Yorkshire and The HumberNorth Yorkshire37
Yorkshire and The HumberSouth Yorkshire34
Yorkshire and The HumberWest Yorkshire35

AVERAGE AGE ACROSS ALL UK REGIONS

  • 37-years-old

REGION WITH LOWEST AVERAGE AGE

  • Greater Manchester and West Midlands, 33-years-old

TOP FIVE OCCUPATIONS

  • Student
  • Housewife
  • Unemployed
  • Health Care Assistant
  • Cleaner

AVERAGE ANNUAL MILEAGE

  • 3,000 miles\

DETAILED VIEW OF MOTORCYCLES OR SCOOTERS OWNED IN EACH AGE BRACKET

  • 16 year olds
RankManufacturerModel
1DIRECT BIKESSPORTS DB50QT-11
2PEUGEOTKISBEE 50
3LEXMOTOECHO 50 LJ50QT-3L
4PIAGGIOZIP 50
5HONDAVISION 50
6DIRECT BIKESRETRO DB50QT-A
7PEUGEOTV CLIC EVP 2 (3 HP)
8DIRECT BIKESNINJA DB50QT15B
9LEXMOTOHUNTER 50 TD50Q
10LEXMTOSCOUT 50 BT49QT-9
  • 17-24 year olds
RankManufacturerModel
1HONDACBR 125 R
2HONDACBF 125
3YAMAHAYBR-125
4HONDAMSX 125
5HONDACB 125 F
6YAMAHAYBR 125 CUSTOM
7HONDACG 125
8YAMAHAYZF-R125
9YAMAHAMT 125 ABS
10PIAGGIOZIP 50
  • 25-34 year olds
RankManufacturerModel
1HONDACBF 125
2KAWASAKIZX-6R
3HONDACBR 125 R
4YAMAHAYBR-125
5HONDACB 125 F
6HONDAMSX 125
7YAMAHAYBR 125 CUSTOM
8YAMAHAYZF-R125
9HONDAPCX 125 (11HP)
10HONDACG 125
  • 35-44 year olds
RankManufacturerModel
1YAMAHAYBR-125
2HONDACBR 125 R
3HONDACBF 125
4HONDACB 125 F
5HONDAPCX 125 (11HP)
6HONDAMSX 125
7HONDAVISION 110
8TRIUMPHSTREET TRIPLE R
9YAMAHAYBR 125 CUSTOM
10HONDAPCX 125 (11 HP)
  • 45-54 year olds
RankManufacturerModel
1TRIUMPHBONNEVILLE T100 (61)
2YAMAHAYBR-125
3HONDACB 125 F
4HONDACBF 125
5HONDACBR 125 R
6AJSMODENA 125
7HONDAPCX 125 (11 HP)
8KAWASAKIER-6F
9HONDAMSX 125
10SUZUKISV 650 S (69 HP)
  • 55-64 year olds
RankManufacturerModel
1HONDACB 500 X
2YAMAHAYBR-125
3HONDAVISION 110
4HONDACBF 125
5HONDACB 125 F
6SUZUKISV 650 S (69 HP)
7YAMAHAXV 535 S VIRAGO
8YAMAHAXV 535 VIRAGO
9HONDAREBEL CMX 500 (45 HP)
10PIAGGIOZIP 50
  • 65+ year olds
RankManufacturerModel
1HONDAC 90 CUB
2DIRECT BIKESSPORTS DB50QT-11
3HONDACG 125
4TRIUMPHSTREET TRIPLE ABS
5PIAGGIOZIP 50
6YAMAHAXV 535 VIRAGO
7APRILIAHABANA CUSTOM 125
8DIBLASIP7TB 60
9HONDAANF 125 INNOVA
10HONDACB 500

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