As of 2016, there are approximately 222 million licensed drivers in the United States. With this huge number of drivers, a percentage of them are bound to get in an accident at some point. In fact, in 2016 more than 40,000 Americans died in a car accident of some sort. It is no wonder car accident lawyers are more popular than ever today. Something interesting is that the frequency of car accidents change depending on different age groups. So, which age group is the safest and which is the most dangerous when it comes to driving?
The most common age for car accidents to occur is between 16 and 17. The average age you can get your driver’s license in the United States is 16, so this statistic makes sense. These new drivers aren’t quite experts at driving yet. They are still learning all the rules of the road and as a result, tend to end up in more car accidents than any other age. If you have a young new driver on your hands, having a car accident lawyer in mind is not a bad idea. Though this age of people gets in the most accidents, their accidents aren’t the most fatal.
As you go up in age from 17, the odds of getting in a car accident decrease, at least for a while. From 19 years of age to about 69, you see a slow decrease in the annual amount of car accidents. The absolute safest driving age group is 30-59. When you begin to pass the age of 69, car accident frequency increases again. In fact, in a 2014-2015 study, drivers between the ages of 60-69 were the safest drivers on the road. They averaged causing fewer accidents than any other age group.
Once you pass the 69-year-old age group, car accident frequency begins to pick up again. Though it never quite reaches the high amount of 16 and 17 year old caused accidents, it does get pretty close. And interestingly enough, once you surpass the age of 80, you won’t cause as many wrecks as these young teens, but the wrecks this age group does cause is a lot more likely to be fatal than the younger accidents. Car accident lawyers are important resources to have in these types of incidents.
Car accidents happen to all ages, however, they occur more frequently at different ages. 16 and 17-year-olds are involved in more car accidents than drivers of any other age. Drivers above the age of 80 don’t cause the most wrecks, but they do cause the most fatal wrecks. If you are involved in a car accident, contacting a car accident lawyer may be a wise idea. Car accident lawyers can help you get the right representation and they can help you deal with tricky insurance companies.
Sources:
https://www.statista.com/statistics/198029/total-number-of-us-licensed-drivers-by-state/
https://injuryfacts.nsc.org/motor-vehicle/overview/introduction/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI0OeKrcv33QIVFr3sCh1Sfwg1EAAYASAAEgI6X_D_BwE
http://aaafoundation.org/rates-motor-vehicle-crashes-injuries-deaths-relation-driver-age-united-states-2014-2015/