Teen Driver Car Crash Statistics

Teenagers and Cars Can Be A Deadly Combination

Before you hand over the car keys to your teenager, know the facts. The leading cause of death among U.S. teens is motor vehicle crashes accounting for 36 percent of all deaths in this age group. Here are more shocking statistics concerning teenage drivers:

• Unsupervised teen passengers increase the risk of a teen driver wrecking. This risk increases with the amonut of teen passengers.
• Teens are more likely to underestimate hazardous driving conditions or are unable to recognize them at all.
• Teens are more likely to speed and allow shorter distances between cars than any other age group.
• Teens have the lowest rate of seat belt use. Ten percent of high schhol students surveyed said they rarely ever or never wear a seat belt when riding with someone else.

2006 Teen Driver Car Crash Statistics

• In 2006, 5,156 teenagers ages 13 to 19 died in motor vehicle crashes.
• About two out of every three teenagers killed in auto accidents in 2006 were males.
• Teenagers accounted for 10 percent of the U.S. population in 2006 and 12 percent of car crash fatalities.
• Teens comprised 14 percent of passenger vehicle (cars, SUVs, pickups,and vans) occupant deaths among all ages, seven percent of pedestrian deaths, four percent of motorcyclist deaths, and 10 percent of bicyclist deaths.
• In 2006, 61 percent of fatalities among passenger vehicle occupants ages 16-19 were drivers.
• Sixty-two percent of teen passenger deaths in 2006 occurred in vehicles driven by another teenager. Among deaths of passengers of all ages, 20 percent occurred when a teenager was driving.
• Among teenage passenger vehicle drivers involved in fatal accidents, about half were involved in single vehicle crashes in 2006.
• In 2006, 54 percent of motor vehicle crash fatalities among teens occurred on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday.
• In 2006, 34 percent of teenage motor vehicle crash deaths occurred between 6 pm and midnight.
• Approximately 18 percent of fatally injured passenger vehicle drivers ages 16 to 17 had BACs of 0.08 percent or higher in 2006, down from 57 percent since 1982.

2005 Teen Driver Car Crash Statistics

• In 2005, motor vehicle crashes were the leading cause of death among 13- to 19-year-old males and females in the United States. Thirty-three percent of deaths among 13- to 19-year-olds occurred in motor vehicle crashes.
• During 2005, almost 400,000 teenagers in auto accidents sustained injuries serious enough to require emergency treatment.
• 16- to 19-year-olds are at the highest risk to be involved in a car accident. This age group is four times more likely than older drivers to crash.
• In 2005, teenagers accounted for 10 percent of the U.S. population and 12 percent of crash accident victims.
• Male drivers and passengers ages 16 to 19 were more than 1.5 times more likely than their female peers to be involved in a fatal car crash.
• Of male drivers between the ages of 15 and 20 who were involved in a fatal crash, 38 percent were speeding and 24 percent had consumed alcohol.
• In 2005, drivers ages 15 to 20 who died in a motor vehicle accident had a BAC of .08 or higher.
• A 2005 national survey found nearly 30 percent of teens reported that they had ridden with a driver who had consumed alcohol within the previous month. One in ten reported driving after drinking alcohol within the same period. Among teen drivers killed in motor vehicle accidents after drinking and driving, 74 percent were unrestrained.
• In 2005, half of the teen deaths from motor vehicle crashes occurred between 3 p.m. and midnight. 54 percent occurred on a Friday, Saturday, or Sunday.