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A new app is aiming to cut young driver deaths by offering rewards such as pizza and days out for safe driving.

The free Shotgun app , launched by insurer Direct Line, uses GPS technology to track routes and monitor braking and speed on each journey.

The app scores different elements of the user's driving before giving feedback and allowing them to earn points with brands such as Pizza Express, Starbucks and Virgin Experience Days based on overall performance.

The app is not an insurance product and is available to all new drivers between the ages of 17 and 25 regardless of the insurer they have chosen.

Shotgun lasts up until users clock up 1,000 miles - typically six months on the road.

In 2015, 402 teenage car drivers were killed or seriously injured on the UK's roads, equating to seven 17 to 19-year-olds a week, according to Direct Line's own accident statistics.

(Image: PA)

Direct Line said its data had shown that one in four teenage drivers will crash in their first year on the road.

Kerry Chilvers, brands director at Direct Line, said: "There are over half a million teenagers on our roads and every week more than seven of them are killed or suffer life-changing injuries. These are figures we have to change.

"We want Shotgun to act as a new driver's personal wingman beside them, to support them through those important first 1,000 miles of driving.

"We know that scare tactics don't work for this audience, who believe they're invincible, so we worked with behavioural psychologists to develop a solution which incentivises good driving and the leader board element appeals to competitive natures."