Introduction
The major popularity of motor vehicles in the United States and the long rich history of automobiles within the U.S. it is unsurprising that traffic accidents have become part and parcel of American life.
Traffic accidents in the United States reached a sixteen-year-high in 2021, with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimating 42,915 deaths in motor vehicle accidents. A state’s population, for obvious reasons, is one of the largest factors in their general road safety. Other factors include types of vehicles, climate, topography, and travel speeds. But the way to observe which states have the worst drivers is by examining the fatality rate, expressed (per capita) in the number of deaths per 100,000 people.
See for yourself which states have the worst drivers by browsing the data in the charts.
| # | State | Number of Car Accident Deaths | Number of Fatal Car Accidents |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Texas | 3,874 | 352 |
| 2 | California | 3,847 | 3,558 |
| 3 | Florida | 3,331 | 3,098 |
| 4 | Georgia | 1,664 | 1,522 |
| 5 | North Carolina | 1,538 | 1,412 |
| 6 | Tennessee | 1,217 | 1,119 |
| 7 | Illinois | 1,194 | 1,087 |
| 8 | Pennsylvania | 1,129 | 106 |
| 9 | Michigan | 1,084 | 1,011 |
| 10 | South Carolina | 1,064 | 962 |
| 11 | Arizona | 1,054 | 967 |
| 12 | New York | 1,046 | 963 |
| 13 | Missouri | 987 | 914 |
| 14 | Alabama | 934 | 852 |
| 15 | Indiana | 897 | 815 |
| 16 | Virginia | 850 | 796 |
| 17 | Louisiana | 828 | 762 |
| 18 | Kentucky | 780 | 709 |
| 19 | Mississippi | 752 | 687 |
| 20 | Oklahoma | 652 | 599 |
| 21 | Arkansas | 638 | 585 |
| 22 | Colorado | 622 | 574 |
| 23 | Wisconsin | 614 | 561 |
| 24 | New Jersey | 584 | 547 |
| 25 | Maryland | 567 | 540 |
| 26 | Washington | 560 | 525 |
| 27 | Oregon | 508 | 461 |
| 28 | Kansas | 426 | 382 |
| 29 | New Mexico | 398 | 365 |
| 30 | Minnesota | 394 | 369 |
| 31 | Massachusetts | 343 | 327 |
| 32 | Iowa | 337 | 304 |
| 33 | Nevada | 317 | 293 |
| 34 | Connecticut | 295 | 279 |
| 35 | Utah | 276 | 256 |
| 36 | West Virginia | 267 | 249 |
| 37 | Nebraska | 233 | 217 |
| 38 | Idaho | 214 | 188 |
| 39 | Montana | 213 | 190 |
| 40 | Maine | 164 | 151 |
| 41 | South Dakota | 141 | 132 |
| 42 | Wyoming | 127 | 114 |
| 43 | Ohio | 123 | 1,154 |
| 44 | Delaware | 116 | 104 |
| 45 | New Hampshire | 104 | 98 |
| 46 | North Dakota | 100 | 96 |
| 47 | Hawaii | 85 | 81 |
| 48 | Rhode Island | 67 | 66 |
| 49 | Alaska | 64 | 53 |
| 50 | Vermont | 62 | 58 |
| 51 | District of Columbia | 36 | 34 |
Number of Car Accident Deaths by State
Alabama
Number of Car Accident Deaths
934
Ranked in the US
#14
Ranked in the US
#13
Alaska
Number of Car Accident Deaths
64
Ranked in the US
#49
Ranked in the US
#50
Arizona
Number of Car Accident Deaths
1,054
Ranked in the US
#11
Ranked in the US
#9
Arkansas
Number of Car Accident Deaths
638
Ranked in the US
#21
Ranked in the US
#20
California
Number of Car Accident Deaths
3,847
Ranked in the US
#2
Ranked in the US
#1
Colorado
Number of Car Accident Deaths
622
Ranked in the US
#22
Ranked in the US
#21
Connecticut
Number of Car Accident Deaths
295
Ranked in the US
#34
Ranked in the US
#34
Delaware
Number of Car Accident Deaths
116
Ranked in the US
#44
Ranked in the US
#44
District of Columbia
Number of Car Accident Deaths
36
Ranked in the US
#51
Ranked in the US
#51
Florida
Number of Car Accident Deaths
3,331
Ranked in the US
#3
Ranked in the US
#2
Georgia
Number of Car Accident Deaths
1,664
Ranked in the US
#4
Ranked in the US
#3
Hawaii
Number of Car Accident Deaths
85
Ranked in the US
#47
Ranked in the US
#47
Idaho
Number of Car Accident Deaths
214
Ranked in the US
#38
Ranked in the US
#39
Illinois
Number of Car Accident Deaths
1,194
Ranked in the US
#7
Ranked in the US
#7
Indiana
Number of Car Accident Deaths
897
Ranked in the US
#15
Ranked in the US
#14
Iowa
Number of Car Accident Deaths
337
Ranked in the US
#32
Ranked in the US
#32
Kansas
Number of Car Accident Deaths
426
Ranked in the US
#28
Ranked in the US
#27
Kentucky
Number of Car Accident Deaths
780
Ranked in the US
#18
Ranked in the US
#17
Louisiana
Number of Car Accident Deaths
828
Ranked in the US
#17
Ranked in the US
#16
Maine
Number of Car Accident Deaths
164
Ranked in the US
#40
Ranked in the US
#40
Maryland
Number of Car Accident Deaths
567
Ranked in the US
#25
Ranked in the US
#24
Massachusetts
Number of Car Accident Deaths
343
Ranked in the US
#31
Ranked in the US
#31
Michigan
Number of Car Accident Deaths
1,084
Ranked in the US
#9
Ranked in the US
#8
Minnesota
Number of Car Accident Deaths
394
Ranked in the US
#30
Ranked in the US
#28
Mississippi
Number of Car Accident Deaths
752
Ranked in the US
#19
Ranked in the US
#18
Missouri
Number of Car Accident Deaths
987
Ranked in the US
#13
Ranked in the US
#12
Montana
Number of Car Accident Deaths
213
Ranked in the US
#39
Ranked in the US
#38
Nebraska
Number of Car Accident Deaths
233
Ranked in the US
#37
Ranked in the US
#37
Nevada
Number of Car Accident Deaths
317
Ranked in the US
#33
Ranked in the US
#33
New Hampshire
Number of Car Accident Deaths
104
Ranked in the US
#45
Ranked in the US
#45
New Jersey
Number of Car Accident Deaths
584
Ranked in the US
#24
Ranked in the US
#23
New Mexico
Number of Car Accident Deaths
398
Ranked in the US
#29
Ranked in the US
#29
New York
Number of Car Accident Deaths
1,046
Ranked in the US
#12
Ranked in the US
#10
North Carolina
Number of Car Accident Deaths
1,538
Ranked in the US
#5
Ranked in the US
#4
North Dakota
Number of Car Accident Deaths
100
Ranked in the US
#46
Ranked in the US
#46
Ohio
Number of Car Accident Deaths
123
Ranked in the US
#43
Ranked in the US
#5
Oklahoma
Number of Car Accident Deaths
652
Ranked in the US
#20
Ranked in the US
#19
Oregon
Number of Car Accident Deaths
508
Ranked in the US
#27
Ranked in the US
#26
Pennsylvania
Number of Car Accident Deaths
1,129
Ranked in the US
#8
Ranked in the US
#43
Rhode Island
Number of Car Accident Deaths
67
Ranked in the US
#48
Ranked in the US
#48
South Carolina
Number of Car Accident Deaths
1,064
Ranked in the US
#10
Ranked in the US
#11
South Dakota
Number of Car Accident Deaths
141
Ranked in the US
#41
Ranked in the US
#41
Tennessee
Number of Car Accident Deaths
1,217
Ranked in the US
#6
Ranked in the US
#6
Texas
Number of Car Accident Deaths
3,874
Ranked in the US
#1
Ranked in the US
#30
Utah
Number of Car Accident Deaths
276
Ranked in the US
#35
Ranked in the US
#35
Vermont
Number of Car Accident Deaths
62
Ranked in the US
#50
Ranked in the US
#49
Virginia
Number of Car Accident Deaths
850
Ranked in the US
#16
Ranked in the US
#15
Washington
Number of Car Accident Deaths
560
Ranked in the US
#26
Ranked in the US
#25
West Virginia
Number of Car Accident Deaths
267
Ranked in the US
#36
Ranked in the US
#36
Wisconsin
Number of Car Accident Deaths
614
Ranked in the US
#23
Ranked in the US
#22
Wyoming
Number of Car Accident Deaths
127
Ranked in the US
#42
Ranked in the US
#42
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