Car crashes are a common occurance on our roads. In fact, they’re basically a fact of life in this country. Common Causes of Car Accidents statistics show just how common collisions are on U.S. roadways.
Forbes tells us that in 2020, a total of 35,766 fatal car accidents occurred on roadways across the United States. Far, far more crashes happened that didn’t result in a death, thankfully. There were 1,593,390 crashes that resulted in injuries and 3,621,681 crashes that caused property damage. In total, there were 5,250,837 car collisions that happened over the course of a single year, and keep in mind that is a year that many of us drove significantly less than we normally do.
Why do these crashes occur though? What factors come into play?
The Most Common Causes of Car Accidents
The car crash experts over at Desiahlawfirm.com tell us that some of the most common causes of car accidents include:
#1 Distracted Driving. Distracted drivers are the top cause of car accidents in the U.S. today. This could be anything from looking down to send a text message to taking a bite of your hamburger.
#2 Drunk and Drugged Driving. Driving under the influence of alcohol causes car accidents every day, even fatal ones. It’s not only alcohol that is dangerous when mixed with driving, though. Drugs, both legal and illegal, can impair your ability to fully function as a driver.
#3 Speeding. Traveling above the speed limit is an easy way to cause a car accident, even if you’re doing everything else correctly.
#4 Rain. Car accidents happen very often in the rain because water creates slick and dangerous surfaces for all vehicles.
#5 Running Red Lights. Drivers that run red lights do so at the risk of causing an accident. These are often fatal because they often cause side-impact collisions at high speeds.
#6 Running Stop Signs. Other car accidents occur because a driver ran a stop sign. Many rollover accidents and side-impact car accidents result from drivers that run stop signs.
#7 Unsafe Lane Changes. When drivers don’t properly and safely make a lane change, it can lead to a car accident.
#8 Tailgating. You should give the car in front of you a one-car-length buffer for every 10 mph you drive. Accidents can occur when a driver dangerously tailgates another at high speeds. It’s also worth noting that tailgating can cause road rage. By tailgating another driver in anger or speeding past another driver only to pull in front of them and brake, it can trigger rage and may cause a needless car accident.
#9 Drowsy Driving. Most of the car accidents caused by drowsy driving occur at night. This is often either long haul truckers or those who have been driving too long.
#10 Fog. Safe driving is a skill that requires the ability to see, and fog makes it extremely difficult to see more than a car length in front of you. When you can’t tell what’s coming, you can’t break in time.
