Highway deaths are a common problem around the world, but some countries tend to have more problems with car crash fatalities than others. Countries that have long-distance roadways and high speeds tend to have higher fatality rates, but so do nations that struggle to take care of their infrastructure or have issues with drinking and driving. Most car crash fatalities are associated in the public mind with high speed, head-on collisions, but a vast majority of fatalities occur in low speed, country settings.
Statistics on Car Crash Fatalities
1. Car crash fatalities account for 2.2% of the total number of deaths that occur annually, making it the #9 cause of human death in the world.
2. More than half of all road traffic deaths occur among young adults ages 15-44.
3. Car crashes are the leading cause of death among young people ages 15-29.
4. More than 1,000 people under the age of 25 die on the world’s roads every day.
5. 9 out of every 10 car crashes happens in countries that have low to middle income levels, even though these countries have less than half of the world’s cars.
6. The annual cost of car crashes on a global level is estimated to be over $510 billion.
7. Car crash fatalities are expected to rise to the 5th leading cause of death in the world by 2030 at current escalation rates.
8. The number of people, on average, who die on US roads every year because of car crashes: 37,000.
9. Over 1,600 children under the age of 15 die each year on American roads.
10. Drivers below the age of 20 are responsible for 1 in 4 traffic fatalities in any given year.
11. 50% of the global cost of car crashes every year comes from the United States.
12. Every year, this is what the average person pays out through various costs to cover the expenses of an accident: $820.
13. Car crashes are the single greatest annual cause of death of healthy U.S. citizens traveling abroad.
14. The average number of people who are killed on US roads every day: 80.
15. There are an additional 5.4 million car crashes that occur every year that do not cause a fatality.
16. 32% of car crashes that involve a traffic fatality are caused by drunk driving.
17. The percentage of fatal accidents that are attributed to the weather: 11%.
18. When a fatal car crash does happen, more than 50% of the time, it is the driver who caused the crash that is the victim.
19. A majority of fatal car crashes occur on Saturdays.
20. The state with the highest car crash fatality rate is Montana, with 2 deaths per 100 million vehicle miles traveled.
21. Massachusetts has the lowest death rate: 0.6 fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles.
22. In 2012, the average auto liability claim for property damage was $3,073 in the United States.
23. The average auto liability claim for bodily injury: $14,600.
24. The fatal crash rate per mile driven is nearly twice as high for the 16-17 age bracket as it is for the 18-19 age bracket.
25. The number of teens killed in car crashes has dropped by 68% since 1975.
26. 23% of drivers aged 15 to 20 involved in fatal motor vehicle crashes were drinking.
27. The fatality rates for men have dropped more [72%] in the same time frame than they have for women [55%].
28. Drivers with a BAC of only 0.02 to 0.05% are 7x more likely to die in a crash than sober drivers.
29. With a BAC of 0.20%, a driver has a 90x greater chance of being involved in a fatal car crash than a completely sober driver.
30. Alcohol related car crashes account for nearly 25% of the total cost of accidents in the United States every year.
31. The number of people who admit that they’ve driven somewhere when they were likely driving under the influence: 149 million.
32. Teens are more likely to: speed while driving, run red lights, make illegal turns, knowingly ride with a driver who is intoxicated, and choose to drive after using alcohol or drugs.
33. 8 teens die every day in DUI crashes.
34. On average, each state in the US has one 1 out of every 7 licensed drivers with at least one DUI.
35. Young people ages 15-24 represent only 14% of the U.S. population. However, they account for 29% of the total costs of car crash fatalities that happen every year.
36. In 2011, the motor vehicle death rate for male drivers and passengers ages 16 to 19 was almost two times that of their female counterparts.
37. In 2012, 71% of drivers aged 15 to 20 were killed in motor vehicle crashes after drinking and driving were not wearing a seat belt.
38. 49% of teen deaths from motor vehicle crashes occurred between 3 p.m. and midnight and 53% occurred on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday.
39. 55% of teens killed in a fatal car crash were not wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash.
The Growing Concern for Car Crashes
How serious are car crashes in the world today? They account for one of the top 10 leading causes of global death. It isn’t just fatalities that happen with car crashes either. Up to 50 million people become injured or disabled as a direct result of a car crash. These are lives that are often affected over years and decades because of the results of a single second or two of indecision, a lack of attention, or just a surprise on the road.
To reduce the number of deaths, car manufacturers have attempted to create a number of unique safety products. Air bag technology developed from the need to protect people, as have other forms of driver and passenger protection, even during high impact crashes. The issue, unfortunately, is that with so many distractions on the road today, accidents will occur when they don’t necessarily need to occur. Up to two-thirds of all car crashes are because of distracted driving.
Eating, finding a new CD, or just looking over at the kids to get them to stop arguing are all ways a driver can be distracted. Those can be just as serious as drunk driving, being high, or driving while drowsy under the right circumstances. As the statistics and facts prove, it is up to each driver to stay vigilant in order for these deaths on global roads to be reduced.
Making the Driving Environment Safer
If we want to create a safer environment on the world’s roads, then three things need to happen: improved roadways, more driver education, and more enforcement of DUI, speeding laws, and distracted driving laws.
The sad fact is that almost all fatal car crashes are a preventable death. Only 1 out of 10 fatalities on the road occur because bad weather caused the accident. Another 10% can be attributed to mechanical failures of a vehicle, hidden roadway damage, and other non-driver related issues. On the other hand, 80% of car crash fatalities happen because of drinking and driving [or drug use and driving], speeding, or distracted driving.
Most of the fatalities that occur also happen with the youngest drivers that are on the roadway. When just two years of experience are under a driver’s belt, the chances of being involved in a fatal car crash are cut in half. As drivers continue to age, those risks continue to drop. This is because teen drivers and adults under the age of 25 tend to have more of an invincibility approach when it comes to life. With an attitude that says nothing will happen to them if they attempt risky behavior, there is an automatic increase in the chances that a fatal accident will occur.
Outside of staying in control and not being distracted, choosing to wear a seat belt is one of the best ways to prevent a fatality from occurring, even if an accident does occur. Research shows that the simple act of properly affixing a seat belt into place can reduce the chances of a car crash fatality by 50%. Graduated licensing programs have shown to reduce the chances of a fatal car crash by an additional 40%.
Although certain circumstances will always be outside of a driver’s control, such as a deer running out into the middle of a high speed interstate in the dark of night, there are many things that are within a driver’s control. Choose to stay out of a vehicle when you suspect the driver may have been drinking or using drugs. Always buckle your seat belt. Keep your eyes on the road instead of texting or talking on the phone. Realize that a conversation can wait until the destination is reached in most circumstances.
By focusing on safety, we can all do our part to reduce car crash fatalities. The statistics prove this is so.
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