Accident Statistics for Teenagers

I’m Ed Smith, a Rio Vista injury lawyer. Rio Vista is part of the Eastern region of Solano County in sunny California. A 2016 Census revealed that Rio Vista has a current population of approximately 8,641. Statistics derived from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration show that Solano County deals with many traffic-related collisions, making accidents a significant public safety issue. Below is a detailed discussion on the high rates of teenage driving accidents in California.

Auto Collision Statistics

Highway Safety researchers are curious of the relationship between driving behavior and age. Traffic crashes are incredibly prevalent in teenage drivers as it is the number one cause of death for teenagers all across the United States. On an annual basis, there are more crash and traffic violation rights against drivers from the ages of 16 to 19 years old.

According to the Fatality Analysis Report System (FARS), in the year 2008 California had the 2nd highest rank for fatal crashes that involved young drivers from the age range of 15 to 20 years. On average, the chances of getting into an auto collision for 16 year olds is 3.7 times higher than drivers of all ages. Additionally, if you are 16 years old, you are 1.8 times more likely to get into a drinking-related car accident.

Drivers between the age group of 16 to 19 are most likely to be involved in fatal injury collisions due to being at an unsafe speed that falls outside of the speed limit at a given time. Going too fast – or even too slow – exponentially increases your chances of getting into an accident.

Teenage Accidents by Primary Collision Factor

Determining who is accountable for a collision is to establish legal liability. Here are the Primary Collision Factors for teenagers involved in fatal injury crashes:

Unsafe Speed – 35.3%
Right-of-way – 20.6%
Improper Turns – 14.8%
Sign/Signal – 8.1%
Alcohol/Drugs – 5.1%
Passing/Lane Switching – 4.3%
Wrong Side of the Road – 3.1%
Other – 8.7%

Factors That Make Teens at Risk

Teens have an increased likelihood of making poor critical thinking choices that lead to fatal injury crashes. They are also more likely to underrate a serious situation and/or ignore a potentially dangerous one.
Teens are more likely to speed, and these chances go up when there are male teen passengers in the car. They also typically permit shorter headways – the gap in distance from one front of a car to another – than older drivers.

Rio Vista Car Accident Attorney

I’m Ed Smith, and I am a Rio Vista injury lawyer. Car accidents can happen to anyone at any time. If you have suffered injuries in a car accident due to someone else’s negligent driving, please call me for free, friendly advice. I can be reached at (707) 564-1900 or (800) 404-5400.

I have been working along side of Rio Vista citizens who have filed wrongful death and personal injury claims since 1982.

Initially, online client reviews can be helpful when selecting an experienced injury lawyer. Mine can be found on Avvo, Google, and Yelp.

You can also review my past verdicts and settlements online.

I am in the Million Dollar Advocates Forum in California, which is a group of highly successful trial lawyers that have reached million dollar case settlements or verdicts.

I founded the website autoaccident.com, a completely free online resource for personal injury and wrongful death information.

Sources:

Image Attribution: Author Pixel-mixer via Pixabay. Licensed under CC0 Creative Commons.

:jf bw [cs 621] cv

Accident Statistics for Teenagers