CarInsuranceComparison.com’s Worst Drivers by State 2019 Edition

The rankings are in for the top 10 states home to the worst drivers in 2019—the results are nothing short of alarming. 

Leading online insurance comparison resource, CarInsuranceComparison.com conducted a case study of over 3,000 data points from the U.S. DOT’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to rank all 50 states plus the District of Columbia by deadly driving behaviors and traffic fatalities. 

The study’s results found the following states to top the list of worst drivers nationally:

#5 – Texas

#4 – Louisiana

#3 – Arizona

#2 – South Carolina 

#1 – New Mexico

“We conduct this study every year. You think we’d get used to it,” says Sara Routhier Managing Editor of CarInsuranceComparison.com. “But, the death totals always make us pause in disbelief. They are both sad and shocking.”

The case study also reports year-over-year rankings for the worst drivers by state in each category, along with some very sobering fatality facts. CarInsuranceComparison’s study reports that 2019 will be the third-straight year for over 40,000 traffic deaths in the U.S., according to early estimates. 

Just through June of this year, the estimated cost of motor vehicle fatalities, injuries, and property damage was a staggering $191.7 billion.

“Seeing how many drivers across our country are speeding, driving drunk, and ignoring traffic laws—even with all the heartbreaking stories shared on social media.” Routhier continues. 

“People are driving distracted or impaired and innocent people are dying every day. It’s really eye-opening the trends we are seeing in particular areas of the country. It certainly makes our team of researchers and writers drive more defensively.” 

See the full study here.

About the Company:

CarInsuranceComparison.com is a one-stop-shop marketplace for research and effortless car insurance comparison, allowing you to get your questions about car insurance answered and compare coverage easily — all in one place. With a database of over 1,000 free articles, our team cares about helping you find the best coverage by offering high-quality content on a range of car insurance topics. CarInsuranceComparison.com is wholly owned by 360 Quote LLC, an Osceola Capital Management company, and is located in Seattle, Washington.

Study Methodology:

Our extensive research process for our annual studies includes all 50 U.S. States and the District of Columbia. Our research team collects over 3,000 data points from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to rank all 50 states plus D.C. by the following chief categories:

• Fatality Rate: The number of traffic deaths for every 100 million vehicle miles traveled
• Failure to Obey: Deaths involving failure to obey traffic laws (not wearing seat belts, ignoring traffic signals, or driving without a valid license)
• Drunk Driving: Traffic fatalities involving alcohol-impaired drivers
• Speeding: Deaths involving motorists who were speeding
• Careless Driving: The number of bicyclists and pedestrians killed by drivers for every 100,000 residents

The rankings for each of the five categories above were then totaled to achieve the final scores for all 50 states plus the District of Columbia.

The states with the 10 highest cumulative rankings and lowest scores in each category comprise the ten states with the worst drivers in the U.S. For the purposes of this study, the highest rankings are equal to the highest number of traffic deaths and fatal crashes.

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