According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), in 2017 nearly one person died every 48 minutes as a result of drunk driving crashes. While statistics show that drunk driving fatalities are on the decline, they still claim over 10,000 lives each year. 29 percent of all traffic related fatalities were the result of alcohol-impaired driving. Drunk driving fatalities affect all 50 states.
Economic Cost
NHTSA found that the estimated economic cost of alcohol impaired driving was $44 billion. This was calculated by determining the loss in productivity, workplace losses, legal and court expenses, medical costs, emergency medical services, insurance administration, congestion and property damage. The study goes on to recognize the unimaginable intangible costs of alcohol-impaired driving such as loss of life.
Drunk Driving Statistics by State
In 2017, the states with the most alcohol-impaired-driving fatalities were Texas, California and Florida. 31% of the motor vehicle fatalities involved a driver with a blood alcohol concentration of .08% or higher. Throughout the United States, a person is more likely to be involved in a fatal motor vehicle collision involving an impaired driver at night when people were 3.6 times more likely to be under the influence of alcohol.
The crash stats published by NHTSA are a devastating reminder of the deadly consequences of drinking and driving.