[Study] Fatal Crashes on New Years Eve and New Years Day 2013-2018

December 12, 2019 |

Our Blog

New Year’s Eve is widely considered one of the heaviest drinking holidays in the United States. While more and more Americans are choosing to ring in the New Year at home, millions of people still celebrate by going out to bars and clubs or attending holiday events.

At Cannon & Dunphy S.C., our Milwaukee auto accident attorneys are concerned about road safety, especially during the holidays. We wanted to find out when and where the most fatal crashes occur during the New Year Holiday. So, we worked with data visualization and consumer safety advocacy firm, Safer America, to analyze five years of NHTSA fatal crash data.

We isolated all deadly crashes that occurred on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day from 2013 (New Year’s Eve 2013 / New Years Day 2014) to 2018 (New Year’s Eve 2017 / New Years Day 2018).

During our study period, we found that over 1,000 people were killed in fatal collisions across the United States on New Year’s Eve or Day. In fact, there were:

916 total fatal crashes
1,004 fatalities
341 fatal crashes involving drunk drivers
377 people killed in drunk driving crashes

Which states had the most fatal crashes? Raw totals don’t tell the whole story, so we calculated a crash rate based on the number of licensed drivers in each state.

In terms of total crashes, Texas (188), Florida (167) and California (154) had by far the highest number. However, these three states are also the states with the highest population. When looking at fatal crashes per 100,000 licensed drivers, the safest and most dangerous states were much different.

The five states with the highest crash rates (most dangerous states) were:

Mississippi
Oklahoma
South Carolina
Wyoming
Texas

The five states with the lowest crash rates (safest states) were:

North Dakota
Delaware
Rhode Island
Minnesota
Vermont

Five Years of Fatal Crashes On New Years Eve and New Years Day

*Crash rates are expressed per 100,000 licensed drivers in each state.

Rank	State	Fatal Crashes	Fatalities	Drunk Driver Crashes	Drunk Driver Fatalities	Crashes Per 100k Licensed Drivers
1	Mississippi	29	33	8	8	1.44
2	Oklahoma	33	35	12	14	1.32
3	South Carolina	47	50	18	19	1.25
4	Wyoming	5	6	1	1	1.19
5	Texas	188	210	62	66	1.18
6	Florida	167	178	37	39	1.14
7	Louisiana	36	43	21	25	1.06
8	West Virginia	12	12	4	4	1.04
9	New Mexico	15	15	4	4	0.99
10	Alabama	38	44	12	15	0.96
11	Kentucky	28	32	10	12	0.92
12	Tennessee	48	54	13	15	0.92
13	Arizona	42	43	11	11	0.83
14	Missouri	35	38	16	19	0.82
15	South Dakota	5	5	3	3	0.80
16	North Carolina	57	61	15	16	0.78
17	Maine	8	9	4	5	0.78
18	Georgia	54	63	18	22	0.77
19	Oregon	22	25	5	6	0.77
20	Hawaii	7	7	1	1	0.75
21	Alaska	4	4	2	2	0.75
22	Virginia	41	41	13	13	0.69
23	Kansas	13	13	4	4	0.64
24	Indiana	29	31	9	9	0.64
25	Michigan	45	53	17	20	0.64
26	Connecticut	16	17	3	4	0.61
27	California	154	167	35	38	0.59
28	Wisconsin	23	27	15	19	0.55
29	Iowa	12	12	7	7	0.53
30	Nevada	10	11	4	5	0.53
31	Illinois	45	50	18	21	0.53
32	Colorado	21	24	6	7	0.52
33	Utah	10	11	3	4	0.51
34	Montana	4	4	1	1	0.50
35	Washington	28	32	12	14	0.50
36	Pennsylvania	43	46	10	10	0.48
37	Ohio	37	41	18	22	0.46
38	Idaho	5	6	4	5	0.43
39	Nebraska	6	6	3	3	0.43
40	Maryland	18	20	7	8	0.42
41	New Jersey	26	26	7	7	0.42
42	New York	49	51	13	13	0.41
43	District Of Columbia	2	2	0	0	0.41
44	Massachusetts	19	26	6	10	0.38
45	Arkansas	9	9	3	3	0.38
46	New Hampshire	4	4	2	2	0.36
47	Vermont	2	2	2	2	0.36
48	Minnesota	12	15	2	2	0.36
49	Rhode Island	2	2	0	0	0.27
50	Delaware	2	2	1	1	0.26
51	North Dakota	1	1	1	1	0.18

Which Counties had the most fatal crashes?

At the county level, the top of the list is dominated by some of the largest counties in the United States. Interestingly, every county in the top ten was found in either California, Texas or Florida.

Los Angeles, CA – 33 fatal crashes, 35 fatalities
Harris County, TX – 26 fatal crashes, 30 fatalities
Dallas County, TX – 20 fatal crashes
Maricopa County, AZ – 18 fatal crashes, 18 fatalities
San Diego County, CA – 17 fatal crashes, 18 fatalities
San Bernardino County, CA – 14 fatal crashes, 20 fatalities
Orange County, FL – 13 fatal crashes, 14 fatalities
Miami-Dade County, FL – 13 fatal crashes, 13 fatalities
Duval County, FL – 12 fatal crashes, 13 fatalities
Broward County, FL – 12 fatal crashes, 12 fatalities

What Time of Day is the Most Dangerous on New Year’?

Without a doubt, the hours between 1 am and 3 am are the most dangerous during the New Year’s holiday. These hours were numbers 1 and 2 for total fatal crash and fatal crashes involving a drunk driver. Interestingly, fatal crashes drop significantly during the midnight to 1 am, as people everywhere likely stay where they are to count down.

Key Takeaways

It is clear that there is a significant fatal crash risk associated with the New Year’s holiday. So what can motorists and party-goers do to protect themselves?

Most importantly, don’t drink and drive. If you are planning on consuming alcohol at a New Year’s celebration, designate a driver or get a sober ride home.
Don’t drive between the hours of 1 and 3 am unless you absolutely have to. This is the peak time for fatal accidents and fatal alcohol-related accidents on New Year’s.
Drive defensively whenever possible. Expect the unexpected and be ready to adjust accordingly.
Inspect your vehicle. Before you get on the road, make sure that your tires are properly inflated (and have sufficient tread), fluids are not low and your car’s brakes are functioning properly.
Don’t drive distracted. Distracted driving accidents can be fatal. Put the phone down, don’t get too involved in talking to passengers and keep your eyes on the road and arrive alive at your destination.
Avoid speeding. Excessive speeding is a major factor in fatal crashes no matter what time of year it is, resulting in the wrongful death of a loved one.

The personal injury attorneys at Cannon & Dunphy, S.C. encourage everyone to celebrate and enjoy themselves ringing in the new year. We hope that seeing the numbers and understanding the risk helps people make the decision to celebrate safely.