A study by the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) reveals that the annual economic cost of motor vehicle accidents in the USA is over $99 billion per year – direct medical care accounts for $17 billion. This amounts to nearly $500 per licensed driver in the USA, the study informs.

The report has been published in the journal Traffic Injury Prevention.

The CDC says it used 2005 data for the study because it had the most current source of national injuries – fatal and non-fatal – as well as cost data from multiple injuries.

Annual costs of crash-related injuries amounted to:

  • $70 billion (70% of total costs) for individuals traveling in motor vehicles, such as cars and light trucks
  • $12 billion for motorcyclists
  • $10 billion for pedestrians
  • $5 billion for pedal cyclists (people on bicycles)

Dr. Grant Baldwin, director of CDC’s Division of Unintentional Injury Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, said:

Every 10 seconds, someone in the United States is treated in an emergency department for crash-related injuries, and nearly 40,000 people die from these injuries each year. This study highlights the magnitude of the problem of crash-related injuries from a cost perspective, and the numbers are staggering.

The study also found:

  • Fatal motor vehicle-related injuries totaled $58 billion.
  • The cost of non-fatal injuries that required hospitalization totaled $28 billion.
  • ER treatments for injured individuals who were not hospitalized amounted to $14 billion.
  • Males accounted for 70% of fatalities and 52% of injuries in motor vehicle accidents.
  • Male injuries and deaths amounted to $74 billion, or 74% of all costs.
  • 28% of all fatal and non-fatal accidents occurred among teenagers and young adults. They bore 31% ($31 billion) of the costs. This segment of the driving population represent only 14% of the national total.
  • Motorcyclists, who incurred 12% of all costs, only made up 6% of all deaths and injuries.
  • Persons walking with obviously no protection from harm, and incur serious injuries, account for 10% of total costs incurred by motor vehicle crashes and 5% of all harm caused by accidents.

Most accidents can be avoided. The CDC recommends the following precautions:

  • GDL (Graduated Driver Licensing) insures that youth drivers obtain valuable experience on the road as they become familiar with risk situations. GDL enforcement has proven to account for a reduction in accidents amongst 16 year old drivers by as much as 40%.
  • Following child car seat guidelines potentially will reduce total accident related injury costs to youths by $3.6 billion dollars if properly installed and fitted.
  • Chances of fatalities are reduced by 50% if a person is wearing a safety belt in the front passenger seats. National laws allow drivers to be fined by police for not using these belts properly.
  • Motorcyclists and bike riders that wear helmets can reduce potential brain injuries by 69% and prevent deaths by more than 33%.
  • Police checkpoints, utilized to test alcohol levels in drivers, can reduce fatalities by over 20%.

“Incidence and Total Lifetime Costs of Motor Vehicle-Related Fatal and Nonfatal Injury by Road User Type, United States, 2005”
 Rebecca B. Naumann; Ann M. Dellinger; Eduard Zaloshnja; Bruce A. Lawrence; Ted R. Miller
Traffic Injury Prevention. Volume 11, Issue 4 August 2010 , pages 353 – 360
DOI: 10.1080/15389588.2010.486429
Written by Sy Kraft