Common Causes of Automobile Accidents

Many people know that traveling in a commercial airplane is much safer than traveling in a motor vehicle. In fact, automobiles are the most deadly form of transportation in America. In 2003, car accidents were the number-one cause of death for Americans between the ages of four and 34. According to the federal Bureau of Transportation Statistics, occupants of cars and light trucks sustained 71 percent of the nation’s reported transportation fatalities in 2003; by contrast, boats and other water vessels represented 1.9 percent of deaths, pedestrians 10 percent, bus, subway and light rail passengers 0.24 percent, and commercial air carriers just 0.05 percent. Statistically, every American will be in an auto accident at least once in his or her lifetime. But most of the transportation fatalities and injuries we sustain could be prevented with a combination of better driving and stricter safety standards from the auto industry and the government.

Private nonprofit organization Smart Motorist says that 95 percent of auto accidents are caused by driver error. And a 2006 joint study by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Virginia Tech Traffic Center backs that up. In that study, examiners found that the number-one cause of auto accidents in the drivers they studied was driver distractions. Most accidents and near-misses in the study happened within three seconds of some kind of distraction, they found. Common causes of distraction the study found were:

Another common cause of serious accidents is alcohol consumption. In 2005, alcohol was involved in 39 percent of all the fatal crashes but only nine percent of injury-only crashes, an indication of how severe the consequences of drunk driving can be. Driving drunk is strongly correlated with speeding, driving without a license and having a previous DUI. The vast majority of alcohol-related crashes happen just after midnight -- 75 percent of all fatal crashes and 42 percent of injury crashes happened in 2005 during those times. And while 47 percent of single-vehicle crash fatalities are alcohol-related, more than a quarter of multiple-vehicle fatalities involve alcohol as well -- meaning drunk driving is a significant threat to other motorists on the road.

When an auto accident occurs, it’s most likely to be a collision with another auto; such accidents accounted for 39.2 percent of all accident fatalities and 67.8 percent of injury accidents in 2005, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. In the vast majority of those auto-auto deaths, 20 percent, and injuries, 32.3 percent, one vehicle struck another at a side angle. Head-on injuries were the next most deadly, with 10.1 percent of traffic deaths and 3.4 percent of injuries, and rear-end accidents closed the list with 5.4 percent of deaths, but 28.2 percent of injuries. Colliding with a fixed object like a tree, pole or guardrail was responsible for another 31.7 percent of the deaths and 18 percent of injuries in 2005. Colliding with a moving object that wasn’t a vehicle, such as a pedestrian, train or animal, caused 16.6 percent of traffic deaths and 8.7 percent of the injuries in 2005.

While not all young men are irresponsible drivers, study after study shows that youth and maleness are correlated with an increased number of car accidents. In 2005, the rate of driver involvement in a fatal accident was 29.45 people for every 100,000 licensed drivers. However, males ages 16 to 20 were involved in fatal crashes at a rate of 80.69 people per 100,000, the highest involvement rate of any category. The rate for females in the same age group was 34.48 per 100,000. In fact, for every age group, the male involvement rate in accidents is higher. And among females, the younger age groups had significantly higher involvement rates. The rates for injury crashes tell a similar story. The drivers with the lowest involvement in fatal accidents were ages 55 through 64; the drivers with lowest injury accident rates were the oldest drivers, at 74 and older.

The same study tracked factors cited by law enforcement as contributing to a crash. The most common factor cited for all fatal accidents was failure to stay in the correct lane (including running off the road), which was a factor in 28 percent of the accidents. Right behind it was speeding or racing, a factor in 20 percent of accidents. Driving under the influence of drugs, alcohol or medication was also common, at 12.6 percent, followed by failure to yield the right of way (7.3), inattention (5.8), carelessness (4.6) and failure to obey traffic signals (4).

Defective autos and auto parts cause a relatively small amount of accidents, but the consequences can be staggering for the innocent drivers and passengers who trusted manufacturers not to offer them an unsafe product. The NHTSA has recalled more than 390 million defective automobiles since 1966, as well as 46 million defective tires, 66 million defective parts and 42 million defective child seats. In 2000, 14 million Bridgestone/Firestone tires were recalled because of their tendency to lose tread and blow out at high speeds, often causing serious highway accidents. And many SUVs, vans and other light trucks are now known to have defective designs with a high center of gravity that makes them roll over even during normal driving maneuvers. Rollovers not caused by a collision were responsible for an alarming 10 percent of deaths and 4.8 percent of injuries in 2005.

Auto accidents cost Americans more than $230 billion, took more than 43,000 lives and caused 2.7 million injuries in 2005. If you or someone you love is one of these millions of auto accident victims, you have the right to hold the people responsible liable for their actions in court. The experienced auto accident attorneys at BISNAR | CHASE can help you evaluate your case, guide you through the legal system and get you the best possible outcome. We have recovered tens of millions for injured clients since 1978. For a free consultation with no obligation on your part, call us today at 1-800-561-4846 or click here to fill out our convenient online case evaluation form.

HOLDING WRONGDOERS ACCOUNTABLE FOR THE DAMAGES THEY CAUSE SINCE 1978

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