It is a sad truth about our car culture in America that, every time you get out on the highways, freeways, and streets, you are risking your life and those of your passengers. We all know that car travel has long been more dangerous than air travel, but many of us simply depend upon cars to get around or prefer them to public transportation options, if those are even available. But some days on the road are worse than others, especially when it comes to alcohol-related deaths, according to a new study released by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) looking at historical data from 2011-2015.
New Year’s Day and July 4 Top the List of Dangerous Days
On an average day between 2011-2015, 59 people were killed nationwide in car accidents involving a driver, cyclist, or pedestrian with a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.08% or higher. On New Year’s Day for that same time period, the number rises to 83 deaths. In the IIHS study, the institute found that there were 352 deaths from car crashes involving alcohol over its study, which accounted for 62% of the total deaths from car crashes on that day across the years.
- The IIHS also ranked the top ten days of the year for alcohol-related car crash deaths based on the proportion of deaths for that day apparently attributable to alcohol:
- January 1 – 62% (567 total deaths)
- July 4 – 49% (612 total deaths)
- March 24 – 41% (371 total deaths)
- April 27 – 41% (449 total deaths)
- August 9 – 41% (529 total deaths)
- March 8 – 41% (388 total deaths)
- October 27 – 41% (490 total deaths)
- November 2 – 41% (478 total deaths)
- June 16 – 40% (535 total deaths)
- May 3 – 40% (560 total deaths)
The study also noted that pedestrians and bicyclists who are intoxicated also face a high risk of death from collisions with cars, finding that over a third of bicyclists and nearly half of pedestrians killed in car collisions between the hours of 9:00 PM and 6:00 AM were legally intoxicated.
INJURED BY A DRUNK DRIVER IN THE INLAND EMPIRE?
If you have been injured by a drunk driver, or if a family member was killed by a drunk driver, then you are entitled to compensation for your injuries from the driver and his or her insurance company under California law through a personal injury or wrongful death lawsuit.
The car accident attorneys at McCune Wright Arevalo have consistently won multi-million dollar verdicts and settlements on behalf of individuals and their families across the Inland Empire for years. Contact our offices to see what the car accident attorneys at McCune Wright Arevalo, LLP can do for you in winning a settlement or verdict on your behalf.