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Leading Causes of Car Accidents UK 2024
In the UK, a few factors are consistently at play in causing road traffic accidents each year. The NimbleFins car experts gathered statistics from the Department for Transport on the most common causes of car accidents in Great Britain. Being aware of these factors is important because it can help you reduce the likelihood of getting into a car accident.
Contents
- Top 10 Most Common Causes of Car Accidents
- Combined Causes of Car Accidents
- Number of Car Accidents
- FAQs
- Car Accident Cause Data
Top Ten Causes of Car Accidents in Great Britain
The #1 most common cause of car accidents in Great Britain is the driver (or motorcycle rider) failing to look properly—this factor contributes to 37.8% of car accidents. The next most common causes of car accidents is the diver or rider failing to judge another person's path or speed (a factor in 19.7% of accidents) and the driver or rider being careless, reckless or in a hurry (18% of accidents). You'll notice that the percentages add up to more than 100%—this is because many car accidents have more than one contributory factor.
10 Most Common Car Accident Causes in Great Britain | Number | Percent | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Driver/Rider failed to look properly | 24,137 | 34.2% |
| 2 | Driver/Rider careless, reckless or in a hurry | 12,806 | 18.1% |
| 3 | Driver/Rider failed to judge other person's path or speed | 12,381 | 17.5% |
| 4 | Loss of control | 7,540 | 10.7% |
| 5 | Poor turn or manoeuvre | 7,466 | 10.6% |
| 6 | Exceeding speed limit | 5,171 | 7.3% |
| 7 | Pedestrian failed to look properly | 4,924 | 7.0% |
| 8 | Driver/Rider impaired by alcohol | 4,505 | 6.4% |
| 9 | Slippery road (due to weather) | 4,244 | 6.0% |
| 10 | Travelling too fast for conditions | 3,763 | 5.3% |
| Total number of accidents | 70,662 | ||
Combined Factors
An accident can have more than one contributing factor—for instance, a driver who is in a hurry might fail to look properly as a result. In fact, 4.7% of all accidents had both "Driver/Rider failed to look properly" and "Driver/Rider failed to judge other person's path or speed" as factors. This is the most common pair of contributing factors, followed by failing to look and being in a hurry. Here are the ten most common pairs of car accident causes:
| Most common pairs of contributory factors reported together | Percent | |
|---|---|---|
| Driver/Rider failed to look properly | Driver/Rider failed to judge other person's path or speed | 4.7% |
| Driver/Rider failed to look properly | Driver/Rider careless, reckless or in a hurry | 2.9% |
| Poor turn or manoeuvre | Driver/Rider failed to look properly | 2.3% |
| Driver/Rider failed to judge other person's path or speed | Driver/Rider careless, reckless or in a hurry | 1.4% |
| Exceeding speed limit | Driver/Rider careless, reckless or in a hurry | 1.3% |
| Poor turn or manoeuvre | Driver/Rider failed to judge other person's path or speed | 1.2% |
| Loss of control | Driver/Rider careless, reckless or in a hurry | 1.1% |
| Slippery road (due to weather) | Loss of control | 1.0% |
| Poor turn or manoeuvre | Driver/Rider careless, reckless or in a hurry | 1.0% |
| Aggressive driving | Driver/Rider careless, reckless or in a hurry | 0.9% |
Number of Car Accidents UK
Despite a growing number of vehicles on the roads, the number of accidents has dropped pretty steadily over the past 30 years. The accident count has risen a touch in the past few years following an unsurprising drop during the pandemic.
Car Accident Statistics FAQs
Methodology
We analysed road traffic accident statistics produced by the Department for Transport and available at Gov.uk. The most recently available data at the time of writing reflected data from accidents in 2022. Note, the Department for Transport is no longer publishing the common pairs of contributory factors table, so the percentages in that section reflect older data.
Note: The data in this study only includes road traffic accidents where a police officer attended the scene and in which a contributory factor was reported.
Sources
All Data
| Contributory factor reported in accident | Number | Percent |
|---|---|---|
| Road environment contributed | 7,635 | 10.8% |
| Poor or defective road surface | 477 | 0.7% |
| Deposit on road (eg. oil, mud, chippings) | 642 | 0.9% |
| Slippery road (due to weather) | 4,244 | 6.0% |
| Inadequate or masked signs or road markings | 307 | 0.4% |
| Defective traffic signals | 113 | 0.2% |
| Traffic calming (eg. road humps, chicane) | 83 | 0.1% |
| Temporary road layout (eg. contraflow) | 192 | 0.3% |
| Road layout (eg. bend, hill, narrow road) | 1,632 | 2.3% |
| Animal or object in carriageway | 697 | 1.0% |
| Slippery inspection cover or road marking | 32 | 0.0% |
| Vehicle defects | 1,343 | 1.9% |
| Tyres illegal, defective or under inflated | 366 | 0.5% |
| Defective lights or indicators | 133 | 0.2% |
| Defective brakes | 570 | 0.8% |
| Defective steering or suspension | 213 | 0.3% |
| Defective or missing mirrors | 10 | 0.0% |
| Overloaded or poorly loaded vehicle or trailer | 101 | 0.1% |
| Injudicious action | 14,767 | 20.9% |
| Disobeyed automatic traffic signal | 1,225 | 1.7% |
| Disobeyed 'Give Way' or 'Stop' sign or markings | 1,784 | 2.5% |
| Disobeyed double white lines | 170 | 0.2% |
| Disobeyed pedestrian crossing facility | 300 | 0.4% |
| Illegal turn or direction of travel | 566 | 0.8% |
| Exceeding speed limit | 5,171 | 7.3% |
| Travelling too fast for conditions | 3,763 | 5.3% |
| Following too close | 2,961 | 4.2% |
| Vehicle travelling along pavement | 211 | 0.3% |
| Cyclist entering road from pavement | 575 | 0.8% |
| Driver/Rider error or reaction | 43,962 | 62.2% |
| Junction overshoot | 1,530 | 2.2% |
| Junction restart (moving off at junction) | 767 | 1.1% |
| Poor turn or manoeuvre | 7,466 | 10.6% |
| Failed to signal or misleading signal | 1,326 | 1.9% |
| Driver/Rider failed to look properly | 24,137 | 34.2% |
Driver/Rider failed to judge other persons path or speed | 12,381 | 17.5% |
| Too close to cyclist, horse rider or pedestrian | 887 | 1.3% |
| Sudden braking | 2,884 | 4.1% |
| Swerved | 2,364 | 3.3% |
| Loss of control | 7,540 | 10.7% |
| **Impairment or distraction** | 12,246 | 17.3% |
| Driver/Rider impaired by alcohol | 4,505 | 6.4% |
| Driver/Rider impaired by drugs (illicit or medicinal) | 1,757 | 2.5% |
| Fatigue | 1,293 | 1.8% |
| Uncorrected, defective eyesight | 176 | 0.2% |
| Driver/Rider illness or disability, mental or physical | 1,930 | 2.7% |
| Not displaying lights at night or in poor visibility | 272 | 0.4% |
| Rider wearing dark clothing | 310 | 0.4% |
| Driver using mobile phone | 468 | 0.7% |
| Distraction in vehicle | 2,616 | 3.7% |
| Distraction outside vehicle | 977 | 1.4% |
| **Behaviour or inexperience** | 17,615 | 24.9% |
| Aggressive driving | 2,859 | 4.0% |
| Driver/Rider careless, reckless or in a hurry | 12,806 | 18.1% |
| Driver/Rider nervous, uncertain or panic | 884 | 1.3% |
| Driving too slow for conditions or slow veh (eg tractor) | 93 | 0.1% |
| Learner or inexperienced driver/rider | 2,701 | 3.8% |
| Inexperience of driving on the left | 218 | 0.3% |
| Unfamiliar with model of vehicle | 429 | 0.6% |
| **Vision affected by external factors** | 7,255 | 10.3% |
| Stationary or parked vehicle(s) | 1,554 | 2.2% |
| Vegetation | 189 | 0.3% |
| Road layout (eg. bend, winding road, hill crest) | 870 | 1.2% |
| Buildings, road signs, street furniture | 183 | 0.3% |
| Dazzling headlights | 211 | 0.3% |
| Dazzling sun | 2,430 | 3.4% |
| Rain, sleet, snow, or fog | 1,210 | 1.7% |
| Spray from other vehicles | 95 | 0.1% |
| Visor or windscreen dirty, scratched or frosted etc. | 119 | 0.2% |
| Vehicle blind spot | 929 | 1.3% |
| **Pedestrian only (casualty or uninjured)** | 8,045 | 11.4% |
| Crossing road masked by stationary or parked vehicle | 1,047 | 1.5% |
| Pedestrian failed to look properly | 4,924 | 7.0% |
| Pedestrian failed to judge vehicles path or speed | 1,450 | 2.1% |
| Pedestrian wrong use of pedestrian crossing facility | 574 | 0.8% |
| Dangerous action in carriageway (eg. playing) | 528 | 0.7% |
| Pedestrian impaired by alcohol | 870 | 1.2% |
| Pedestrian impaired by drugs (illicit or medicinal) | 152 | 0.2% |
| Pedestrian careless, reckless or in a hurry | 2,003 | 2.8% |
| Pedestrian wearing dark clothing at night | 529 | 0.7% |
| Pedestrian disability or illness, mental or physical | 323 | 0.5% |
| Special Codes | 3,622 | 5.1% |
| Stolen vehicle | 520 | 0.7% |
| Vehicle in course of crime | 554 | 0.8% |
| Emergency vehicle on a call | 358 | 0.5% |
| Vehicle door opened or closed negligently | 140 | 0.2% |
| Other | 2,268 | 3.2% |
| Total number of accidents | 70,662 | 100.0% |