National Car Accident Statistics
Mobile, Alabama
Recent years have seen the numbers of automobile accidents in the U.S. climb to well over 6 million per year. These result in approximately 3 million serious injuries, and 2 million permanent injuries. According to U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration statistics, there were 41,059 automobile related deaths in 2007 alone. This translates to between 13 and 14 deaths per 100,000 people per year.
These statistics encompass any accident in which an automobile is involved, affecting drivers, passengers, motorcyclists, bicyclists, and pedestrians. These numbers remind us that auto accidents are a pervasive threat to public health and safety. In fact, auto accidents continue to be the most likely cause of death for people 40 years of age and under.
Causes
It is estimated that 93 percent of auto accidents are caused by driver distraction. Of this 93 percent:
- 81 percent of accidents involve talking with passengers
- 66 percent involve adjusting the car radio, CD player, or other media device
- 50 percent involve eating or drinking
- 25 percent involve cell phone use or “texting”
Of accidents involving fatalities:
- 15 percent involve speeding
- 18 percent involve driving too fast for conditions
- 40 percent of auto-related fatalities are the result of driver intoxication
- 70 percent of drunk drivers involved in fatal accidents were not wearing seatbelts
- 60 percent of all auto-accident fatalities were not wearing a seatbelt
Types of accidents and risk of fatality:
- 30 percent of accidents are rear impacts, which cause about 6 percent of fatalities
- 29 percent of accidents are side or angle impacts, which account for about 20 percent of fatalities
- 16 percent of accidents are collisions with stationary structures such as light poles, and account for nearly 32 percent of fatalities
- 5 percent of accidents involve collisions with animals, causing less than 1 percent of fatalities
- 2 to 3 percent of accidents involve rollovers, causing 11 percent of fatalities
- 2 percent of accidents are head-on collisions, but account for 10 percent of fatalities
- Collisions with pedestrians and bicyclists account for less than 2 percent of accidents but 13.5 percent of fatalities
If you live in the Mobile, Alabama area and have been injured as the result of an automobile accident, you may be entitled to compensation. Please contact Long & Waite, Attorneys at Law today to arrange a consultation.
Click here to contact us today.