Old stereotypes peg women as dangerous drivers, but statistics show the reality: When it comes to driving, boys are much more naughty. And men's car insurance rates reflect that.

We can't say that all men are reckless when they drive. Nor can we say that all women are safe drivers. But numerous studies show that men are more likely than women to throw caution to the wind when on the road.

"Maybe the testosterone makes them more aggressive," jokes Loretta Worters, spokesperson for the Insurance Information Institute. "But the fact is, the industry doesn't go by whether you have higher testosterone; it goes by numbers and the numbers seem to support that men are generally more reckless than women."

Scofflaws

Sorry boys, but statistics show that you break traffic laws more often than women. Quality Planning Corp., an ISO company that validates policyholder information for car insurance companies, conducted a study that concluded men are at least 50 percent more likely to be cited for reckless driving, seat belt violations, speeding, failure to yield and stop sign/signal violations. To be more specific, the company analyzed an entire year of policyholder information in 2007 and found that men were cited for reckless driving 3.41 times more than women (see chart for comparisons by male vs. female for other violations).

"We were not surprised to see that men have slightly more — about plus 5 percent — violations that result in accidents than women," says Raj Bhat, president of Quality Planning. "And because men are also more likely to violate laws for speeding, passing and yielding, the resulting accidents caused by men lead to more expensive [car insurance] claims than those caused by women."

The study also found that women drivers were about 27 percent less likely to be found "at fault" when involved in an accident.

Cruising and boozing

Men also drive drunk more often than women. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), men outnumbered women by four to one when it came to driving under the influence. This is based on a 10-year study of DUIs from 1998 to 2007. However, that same study found that while more men have been busted for driving impaired, DUI arrests for men have decreased by 7.5 percent during that time period while they increased by nearly 30 percent for women.

Quality Planning's study found that men are 3.09 times more likely to drive under the influence of alcohol than women.

"It's probably one of the worst things you could get on your record," says Pete Moraga, spokesperson for the Insurance Information Network of California. "A DUI means you're going to pay more for insurance for a long time. Your rates will go up. It's possible that you could see a doubling of your rate."

Crash dummies

When it comes to car crashes, men have garnered much higher numbers than women in this category as well. According to the latest statistics from the U.S. Department of Transportation and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, men were involved in roughly 6.1 million crashes in 2007, of which more than 40,000 were fatal. By comparison, women were involved in about 4.4 million crashes and logged about 14,000 fatal car accidents (see chart for breakdown).

"Women have a bad reputation for being bad drivers, but in most cases, from a safety point, they are better drivers," says Bob U'Ren, senior vice president of Quality Planning.

Getting the bill

A variety of factors determine your car insurance premium. Among other things, they include age, marital status, driving record, accident history, type of car you own, credit history, driving experience and the number of miles you drive annually. Gender is often a factor as well.

"But it's a small factor," says Moraga. "It can range from half a percentage point to 2 or 5 points. It depends on the insurance company and it's mostly based on its own actuarial studies."

The California Department of Insurance Web site features a tool designed to give people an idea of car insurance quotes from specific insurance companies. It calculates a generic quote — based on the information you provide — for every insurance company that operates in that state. Some insurance companies (Farmer's, GEICO, Liberty Mutual, Nationwide, Progressive and State Farm) display a price difference based on gender alone — usually men pay more. A few charge women more (see chart for specifics).

"I think the bottom line is whether you are male or female, what you pay for insurance is mostly based on your driving record," Moraga says.

The disadvantage of youth

Experts can only guess at the reason why men tend to drive more recklessly than women. This reckless streak is more prevalent in young men, and both men and women generally become better drivers as they age. Even car insurance companies recognize that maturity pays off. Young drivers, generally between the ages of 16 to 25, are the riskiest drivers — and they pay for this in car insurance premiums.

Young male drivers are paying about 185 percent above their insurers' "base rate" for older male drivers, Worters says (meaning the average rate charged before discounts and other adjustments, plus the insurance company's claims-processing fee). Young women pay about 120 percent above the base rate.

So no matter what gender you are, driving more safely benefits everyone — and your wallet.