Alabama Accident News

Alabama Vehicle and Collision Statistics

Vehicle Population in Alabama

The state of Alabama is largely rural, so in comparison to other metropolitan communities, the rate of collisions is lower. There are 2.3 million registered vehicles in the state. However, there are currently 3.94 million individuals who possess a valid driver’s license.

Alabama Collision Statistics

Since 2016, the number of fatal collisions in the state of Alabama has increased by nearly a quarter, according to the University of Alabama.  A car crash was reported every 3 minutes and 27 seconds in 2021 alone, according to the most recent data available on Drive Safe Alabama’s website, and speeding was the primary cause of most collisions.

Fatal Car Crashes

• In 2021, 986 people were killed in 887 fatal collisions
• Also in 2021, an individual lost their life in a fatal accident once every 8 hours
• A texting driver is 23% more likely to cause a fatal accident than a non-texting driver.
• Drivers have a 1 in 3 chance of getting in a collision at some point.
• Alabama has a .5% greater likelihood than the national average of getting in a fatal collision

Types of Collision Fatalities – Stats from One Recent Year

• Hit a fixed object: 262 fatalities of 17,139 crashes
• Hit pedestrian: 50 fatalities of 613 accidents
• Overturning: 41 fatalities of 1,424 accidents
• Hit parked vehicle: 12 fatalities of 7,269 wrecks
• Hit bicyclist: 4 fatalities of 146 accidents
• Hit animal: 3 fatalities of 3,111 crashes

Alcohol Involvement

Alabama has a higher than average rate of death for drunk driving than the national average. In 2003-2012, the average individual was 40% more likely to get involved in an alcohol-related fatal accident. It has been found that around 2 am was the most likely time to get involved in a DUI or a DWI, and especially on a Sunday. More information can be found on Drive Safe Alabama, which is an excellent archive for vehicular crash information.