Car Crash Statistics 2024

• According to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, there were 42,514 traffic fatalities in the U.S. in 2022.
• The state of California had the highest number of traffic fatalities in 2022, with a total of 4,428.
• Across the U.S., about one-third of traffic deaths involve drunk driving. South Carolina and Rhode Island have the highest percentages of alcohol-related traffic fatalities.
• Speeding is responsible for about one-third of traffic fatalities in the U.S.
• Seat belts are extremely important safety devices, and fortunately, more than 90 percent of people in the U.S. wore them in 2023. In 2022, 86 percent of the people who survived passenger vehicle crashes were wearing seat belts.

Editor’s note (last updated November 2024): We have updated this page with the latest federal and state statistics and data on car crashes and seat belt use in the U.S.

By Year

Year over year, from 1960 to 2021, the number of traffic fatalities increased by 1 percent on average. In 2022, the most recent year for which data is available from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, there were 42,514 traffic fatalities in the U.S., a 2 percent increase from 2021.¹

By State

According to data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), the state of California had the highest number of traffic fatalities in 2022, with a total of 4,428.² On average, 850 people died in car accidents in each state in 2022.

Of course, these numbers don’t take into account the number of licensed drivers per state, just the total number of traffic deaths. As such, states with larger populations are expected to have more traffic fatalities.

Accounting for the number of licensed drivers, the states with the highest rates of fatalities in 2022 were:

• Mississippi (34 fatalities per 100,000 licensed drivers)
• Wyoming (31 fatalities per 100,000 licensed drivers)
• New Mexico (31 fatalities per 100,000 licensed drivers)
• Arkansas (28 fatalities per 100,000 licensed drivers)
• Oklahoma (28 fatalities per 100,000 licensed drivers)

The states with the lowest rates of fatalities were:

• District of Columbia (six fatalities per 100,000 licensed drivers)
• Rhode Island (seven fatalities per 100,000 licensed drivers)
• Massachusetts (nine fatalities per 100,000 licensed drivers)
• New York (10 fatalities per 100,000 licensed drivers)
• New Jersey (10 fatalities per 100,000 licensed drivers)

By Vehicle Type

Passenger vehicles were involved in 33 percent of fatal crashes in 2022, while light trucks were involved in 43 percent.³ The most common type of passenger car involved in fatal crashes was a sedan, while the most common light truck type was a utility truck.

Much like the number of traffic fatalities, this data does not take into account how many of each vehicle type are on the road, so it doesn’t necessarily indicate that these vehicle types are more dangerous than others.

In 2022, the NHTSA estimated that there were close to 6 million injury-only motor vehicle crashes, meaning they didn’t cause any fatalities or property damage. Over 2 million people were injured in traffic accidents that year. Ninety-one percent of the injured people were passenger vehicle occupants, 3 percent were motorcyclists, and 5 percent were nonoccupants, such as pedestrians.⁴

Looking at all of the motor vehicle crashes that occurred in 2022, 71 percent caused property damage only, 28 percent were injury only, and 1 percent involved fatalities.

Alcohol

It’s a sad but true fact that every day in the U.S., approximately 37 people die from drunk driving accidents. In 2022, the total number was 13,524 people, a slight 0.7 percent decrease from 2021.4

Across the U.S., about one-third of traffic deaths involve drunk driving, making it one of the most common causes of traffic fatalities. When you’re behind the wheel, make sure your blood alcohol concentration is at 0 percent to avoid a fatal drunk-driving accident.

Below are the 12 states with the highest percentages of alcohol-related traffic fatalities:

Distracted Driving

Distracted driving is another common yet dangerous practice in the U.S., and it was the cause of 8 percent of fatal crashes in 2022. The state with the highest rate of distracted-driving–related fatalities was New Mexico, followed by Louisiana and Kansas.⁵

Speeding

While speeding is quite common, it can be very dangerous. In 2022, there were 12,151 deaths due to speeding, making up 29 percent of all traffic fatalities.

Speeding is even more dangerous in bad weather. Forty-four percent of speeding-related fatal crashes involved mud, dirt, or gravel; 41 percent involved ice or frost; 39 percent involved moving or standing water; and 33 percent involved snow and slush. That means you need to be extra careful in the wintertime, especially on holidays, when deadly car crashes soar.

Additionally, statistics show that certain demographic groups are more likely to speed than others, which is one reason men pay more for car insurance.

Men made up 83 percent of all speeding drivers in fatal crashes in 2022. Additionally, those between the ages of 25 and 34 made up almost a third of all speeding drivers who died in crashes the same year. The age group with the lowest rates was senior drivers 75 and older, which we’ll discuss in more detail below.⁶

Seat belts are extremely effective in preventing both injuries and deaths in crashes. In the front seat, they are estimated to reduce passenger car deaths by 45 percent and injuries by 50 percent. That means — statistically speaking — that out of the 11,471 passengers who were not wearing their seat belts when they died in car crashes in 2022, around 5,162 could have lived had they used these restraints.

From 1975 to 2017, seat belts saved an estimated 374,276 lives, an average of 8,911 a year. In 2022, 86 percent of the people who survived passenger vehicle crashes were wearing seat belts; only 14 percent were not.⁷ In other words, more than eight in 10 survivors of car crashes were wearing seat belts.

Road Users

Sixty percent of people who died in motor vehicle crashes in 2022 were in cars, pickups, or SUVs. Only 18 percent were pedestrians, 15 percent rode motorcycles, and the rest, at 2 and 3 percent, were in large trucks or on bicycles, respectively.¹⁴

Rural vs. Urban

Fifty-nine percent of these motor vehicle crash deaths occurred in urban areas, while 41 percent occurred in rural areas.

Teens

Teen drivers are a vulnerable driving group due to their lack of experience. In 2022, 2,883 teens aged 13 to 19 died in car crashes; the large majority (about two-thirds) were male, while the rest were female. In fact, unintentional injuries from accidents, which includes car accidents, were the leading cause of death for teens 15 to 19 the same year.¹⁵

When you combine teen driving with speeding, death rates rise. From 2015 to 2019, 43 percent of teen-driving fatalities involved speeding, according to the Governors Highway Safety Administration.¹⁶

Rates were highest in Hawaii, where 83 percent of teen fatalities involved speeding, an amount nearly double the national average.

Seniors

Contrary to stereotypes, senior drivers are safer on the road than most other groups. According to 2022 NHTSA data, those 55 and older have lower rates of fatal car accidents than all other age groups.¹⁷

There is a direct correlation between age and involvement in traffic crashes. The older you are, the less likely you are to be involved in a crash, with the highest crash rates among those ages 15 to 20.

Commercial Drivers

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, car crashes are the leading cause of work-related deaths in the U.S.¹⁸ From 2011 to 2022, more than 21,000 workers in the U.S. died in motor vehicle crashes. In 2022, car accidents were the first or second leading cause of death in every major industry group.

Aside from causing property damage, injuries, and deaths, car crashes also result in an increase in the cost of car insurance. The cost of car insurance after accidents will depend on the provider, but we found that the average increase is 42 percent.

Even if the crash wasn’t your fault, your insurance costs could still rise, depending on your provider. However, the increase will be even higher if you caused the car accident.

Although these crash rates may seem scary, many accidents are preventable if you drive sober, focused, and under the speed limit. Of course, you can’t control what other drivers do, but making sure you’re driving as safely as possible, practicing defensive driving, and always wearing a seat belt will help you stay safe on the road. Overall trends are positive — more people are wearing seat belts year over year, and fewer people are being killed in motor vehicle accidents on average.

To learn more, read our car insurance research on the dangers of distracted driving, auto theft, and hit-and-runs. While some incidents aren’t preventable, seat belts are one easy way to greatly increase your overall safety while driving.

We used third-party data to compile this report. The third parties included:

• Bureau of Transportation Statistics
• GWR
• Insurance Institute for Highway Safety
• National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
• National Safety Council
• Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics