Does Our Area Have the Worst Drivers?

It is a debate as old as time: who are the worst drivers? And, for many, the Washington, D.C., metro area (including Virginia and Maryland) takes the win. However, according to one website that used the National Highway Traffic Safety Association data, our area does not even break the top 10.

Car Insurance Comparison

The website, Car Insurance Comparison, sought to answer the question. They analyzed the NHTSA data and synthesized it down to five bad driving behavior categories: car accident death rates, failure to obey traffic laws, careless driving, drunk driving and speeding.

Rankings

It my surprise our readers, but the worst drivers, at least by their state numbers, are largely in the South, and the Northeast did not break the top 10. Spot 10 belongs to Nevada with the worst speeders in the United States. Spot 9 is Oregon with a per capita death rate of 1.36 people, and their speeding numbers were only slightly better than Nevada’s. Spot 8 is another southern state, Arizona, with a per capita death rate of 1.4 deaths per 100 million miles driven. Spot 6 is a tie between Hawaii and Alabama. Hawaii had the most speed-related fatal car accidents, and Alabama had a 1.29 per capita death rate. The next spots were taken by Louisiana (5), South Carolina (3) and Montana (3). The top spot for worst drivers is a tie between Texas and New Mexico. For Texas, speeding was a huge factor in nearly a third of all fatal car accidents, and it had a per capita pedestrian death rate of 2.24. New Mexico actually beat Texas’s death rate (and all other states) with a per capita death rate of 3.96 for pedestrians.

The D.C. metro area

The study did not look at D.C. proper, but the researchers from Car Insurance Comparison did analyze the data from Maryland and Virginia. Surprisingly, both ranked toward the bottom of the rankings. Maryland ranked 33 of 50, and Virginia tied for spot 40. Though, both states’ worst category was speeding.

Key takeaway

For our readers in Bethesda, Maryland, and the Washington, D.C., metro area, including Virginia, slow down. Speeding was by far our area’s worst driving issue, and it is a dangerous issue that increases the consequences of any car crash. Though, if one is impacted by a careless, speeding driver, a personal injury lawsuit can help victims get justice.