Car Crash Statistics & Car Accident Statistics: The Complete US Report

Car accidents remain the leading cause of unintentional injury death for Americans aged 1–54. This report compiles the latest United States car crash statistics and car accident statistics from NHTSA's Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), and the CDC — covering who crashes, why they crash, where accidents happen, and how America compares to the rest of the world. All figures reflect the most recent full-year federal data available (2022 FARS release).

How many people die from car accidents each year in the US?

According to NHTSA's latest car accident statistics, 42,795 people died on US roads in 2022 — an average of 117 deaths every day, or one fatality every 12 minutes. That is roughly the equivalent of a fully loaded Boeing 737 crashing every single day of the year.

Over the past decade, annual US car accident deaths have ranged from a low of 32,744 (2014) to a pandemic-era high of 42,939 (2021). Before the pandemic, the US was averaging about 36,000 car crash deaths per year; since 2020 that number has jumped by roughly 17%.

How many car deaths happen in the US each year?

Total US car deaths each year break down roughly as follows, according to NHTSA car crash statistics:

• ~26,300 passenger vehicle occupants (drivers + passengers) die in car accidents annually.
• ~6,200 motorcyclists are killed — the highest fatality rate per mile of any road user.
• ~7,500 pedestrians die after being struck by cars — a 40-year high.
• ~1,100 cyclists are killed in car accident collisions each year.
• ~1,700 children under 15 die in motor vehicle crashes annually.

Adding non-fatal outcomes, the NHTSA records roughly 6.1 million police-reported car accidents in a typical year, with about 2.1 million injuriesand ~39,000 fatal crashes (crashes with at least one death). The US fatality rate sits at roughly 1.33 deaths per 100 million vehicle miles traveled (VMT), nearly double the rate of peers like the UK, Sweden, and Japan.

What percentage of drivers have a car accident every year?

With roughly 232 million licensed drivers in the US and 6.1 million police-reported car accidents per year, about 1 in 38 drivers (≈2.6%) is involved in a reported crash annually. Including minor unreported fender-benders, insurance car accident statistics suggest the real number is closer to 1 in 17 drivers per year. Over a lifetime, the average American driver will experience 3–4 car accidents.

Car accident statistics by age — which age group dies the most?

Car crash risk follows a U-shaped curve: teens and drivers over 75 have the highest per-mile fatality rates. NHTSA's car accident statistics show teens aged 16–19 are nearly 3x more likely to die in a car accident per mile driven than drivers aged 20 and older. Drivers aged 20–24 have the highest absolute number of crashes of any age bracket.

Do men or women cause more car accidents?

Car accident statistics by gender are lopsided: men account for about 71% of all US traffic fatalities — roughly 30,400 of the 42,795 car crash deaths in 2022. Men drive more miles on average and are significantly more likely to speed, drive impaired, or skip seatbelts. Per mile driven, male drivers have a fatal car accident rate roughly 2x higher than female drivers.

Women, however, are more likely to be injured in a crash of equivalent severity — IIHS research shows female occupants are about 17% more likely to die in comparable frontal crashes, largely because crash-test dummies and vehicle restraint systems were historically designed around male bodies.

What are the leading causes of car accidents?

NHTSA's car crash statistics attribute 94% of serious car accidents to driver behavior, not vehicle defects or road conditions. The four recurring killers — speeding, impairment, distraction, and failure to wear seatbelts — account for the overwhelming majority of preventable car accident deaths each year.

How many fatal car crashes involve drunk driving?

Alcohol-impaired drivers (BAC ≥ 0.08) killed 13,524 people in 2022, representing 32% of all US traffic deaths. That is one drunk-driving fatality every 39 minutes. Drivers aged 21–24 have the highest rate of impaired driving in fatal crashes.

How many people die from distracted driving each year?

Distracted driving killed 3,308 people in 2022, according to NHTSA. Teens remain the age group most at risk from distraction-related crashes. The actual figure is widely believed to be understated, because distraction is hard to prove post-crash.

How many teens die in car accidents each year?

Motor vehicle crashes are the second-leading cause of death for US teens. In 2022, 2,883 teens aged 13–19 died in motor vehicle crashes, and an estimated 227,000 were injured. Teens are 4x more likely to crash than drivers aged 20+. Nearly half of teen fatal crashes occur between 9pm and midnight on weekends.

Which state has the most car accidents?

Texas leads the US in absolute car accident deaths with 4,481 fatalities in 2022, followed by California (4,428) and Florida (3,530). Per capita, however, the deadliest states in car crash statistics are Mississippi, South Carolina, and Wyoming — all with fatality rates above 22 per 100,000 residents. New York, Massachusetts, and New Jersey consistently post the lowest per-capita car accident rates.

Are you more likely to die in a plane crash or a car crash?

You are about 100x more likely to die in a car crash than a commercial plane crash, measured per passenger mile. The odds of dying in a motor vehicle crash over a lifetime are roughly 1 in 93. The odds of dying in a commercial plane crash are roughly 1 in 11 million per flight segment. In a typical year, US roads kill more people than commercial aviation has killed worldwide in decades combined.

How do self-driving cars compare to human drivers?

Waymo's 2024 safety data — covering over 25 million autonomous miles — reports an 85% reduction in crashes with injuries and a 57% reduction in police-reported crashes versus the human benchmark on the same roads. Tesla's Autopilot reports a crash rate about 10x lower than the US average per mile, though independent researchers note those figures are not directly comparable to NHTSA's baseline.

How does the US compare internationally?

The United States has the highest traffic fatality rate among high-income countries. Its death rate per 100,000 people is roughly 2–3x that of the UK, Germany, Japan, or Australia — driven by more driving per capita, larger vehicles, lower seatbelt use in some states, and weaker enforcement of speeding and impaired driving laws.

What percentage of fatal crashes involve seatbelt non-use?

Roughly half of all passenger-vehicle occupants killed in US crashes were not wearing a seatbelt, even though national seatbelt use hovers around 91.9%. NHTSA estimates seatbelts saved 14,955 lives in 2022, and that universal seatbelt use would have saved an additional 2,549.

How many pedestrians and cyclists are killed by cars each year?

In 2022 the US recorded 7,522 pedestrian deaths — the highest total in over 40 years — and 1,105 cyclist deaths. Pedestrian fatalities are up 77% since reaching their modern low in 2010, driven partly by larger vehicles, faster arterials, and more distracted driving.

When and where do most car crashes happen?

Fatal crashes cluster on Saturday and Sunday nights, with the single deadliest window running from 6pm to 3am. Rural roads account for only 19% of the US population but 40% of all traffic fatalities — head-on collisions at high speed on undivided two-lane roads are the typical pattern.