You may have seen recent reports about how car accidents are on the decline. These reports usually refer to fatal accidents. Tracking the most severe cases helps to show what risks drivers face on the road.
Accident fatalities have indeed been going down over the last few quarters. There are two different reasons why this is happening.
The end of summer
For one thing, the fatal car accident rate rises in the summer specifically because of accidents caused by teen drivers. These go up when teenagers do not have to attend school, as they have a lot of free time over the summer break. But teens are going back to school in the fall, so they are driving less often and causing fewer fatal car accidents.
Changes in traffic congestion
From a big-picture perspective, though, the reason for fewer deadly accidents is simply that there are more cars on the road. You might think that this would cause fatalities to increase, but it has actually been causing them to go down.
The reason is traffic congestion. When traffic levels dropped in 2020, for instance, the average speed of each car increased. Accidents that happen at higher speeds are much more likely to be deadly, so fatal accident stats increased. But traffic levels have gone back up again in 2023-24, which means that the fatal accident rate is dropping.
Even though the rates are on the decline, fatal accidents are still very common. If you’ve lost a loved one due to a negligent mistake made by another driver, be sure you know what legal options you have to seek financial compensation.
