Anyone can cause a car accident at any time. You can belong to virtually any group and do it. However, some groups cause more accidents than others.
The IIHS says men cause more accidents than women. There’s not a huge discrepancy, but one does exist.
If you’re a motorist, it makes sense that you should know what groups cause more accidents. That way, if you’re in one of those groups, you can exercise extra caution. You don’t want to contribute to accident stats.
Let’s talk about the groups that cause the most accidents on America’s roadways and what the data means.
Teenagers
If you look at the groups consistently causing the most accidents over the years, you will almost immediately run into numbers indicating that teens cause more wrecks than almost every other group. If you think about it, you can probably understand why.
Teens don’t have much driving experience. You might have a teenager who gets their license, and they’ve only had six months of driving time, mostly with a parent beside them in the passenger’s seat telling them what to do.
It’s hard to remember all the traffic rules and regulations, and if you’re a teen, you might panic and do something wrong when you’re on the road. Maybe you’re a licensed driver, but you have little practical experience.
As you get a little bit older, you will probably become a better driver. You will log more hours driving on highways, in bad weather, and in all other conditions. Once you get more experience, it follows that you will probably not cause any accidents. You at least won’t pose as much of a risk as the many teens who cause fender benders and sideswipe collisions.
Older Adults
You also have older adults who cause a lot of accidents on the opposite end of the age spectrum. Much like teens, you can probably understand why older adults cause a lot of accidents if you take a moment to consider it.
With older adults, you might have someone with multiple decades of driving experience. Such a person probably has experience driving in bad weather, driving on the highway, driving in bumper-to-bumper traffic, etc.
It is not inexperience but age that catches up with these older drivers. When they get to a certain age, their eyesight often starts to go. So does their hearing. They might not see what is around them so well, and they may not hear another driver honking their horn at them either.
Adults over the age of 80 cause the most car wrecks of any age group, with teen drivers just behind them. That is why, when you get close to reaching the age of 80, you need to seriously consider whether you have visual impairments, auditory ones, or any other medical condition that negatively impacts whether you can drive a car.
You may need to voluntarily stop driving at some point. Most drivers don’t like that idea, especially older adults who value their independence.
However, you need to admit it when you’re a potential danger on the road. You might have a relative drive you somewhere if you need a lift. By voluntarily getting off the road in your advanced age, you might save your life or someone else’s.
Drunk Drivers
A third group causes a lot of car wrecks, almost as many as older adults and teens. This group, drunk drivers, can cause havoc on the road.
No matter your age, gender, ethnicity, or anything else, you shouldn’t drive if you’ve consumed alcohol. If you do, it’s likely you will make a bad decision.
Some people become more cautious if they drive after drinking, but many get reckless. They might speed or miss a stop sign.
Drunk drivers, older adults, and teens make up the trio of groups that cause many more accidents than others. If you know this, then you can act accordingly.
As a youth who just got your license, make sure to obey all traffic laws and to get as much experience driving in different situations as you can. You need hands-on experience to become a better driver.
As you age, try to be aware of whether you still have the same reflexes you once had. Get ready to give up driving if you feel you can’t safely do it anymore. As for drunk driving, don’t do it any age, and you won’t contribute to any troubling accident statistics.
