How safe are the roads in your state? With CarSurance reporting an estimated 40,000 fatal car accidents occurring each year in the U.S., you can’t help but wonder which states have the worst drivers.
SmartAsset.com recently set out to determine the answer to this question by analyzing the rate of highway fatalities as well as the number of uninsured drivers on the roads, how many DUIs there have been and how many times residents have searched for Google terms such as "speeding ticket" or "traffic ticket."
The conclusion? Based on this data, some of the worst drivers in the U.S. are in the South. Topping the list is Mississippi, where just 76.30% of its drivers are insured while there are 1.69 fatalities for every 100 million miles driven and 3.72 DUI incidents per thousand drivers.
Coming in at second is Alabama, which sees an estimated 1.56 fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles driven. Just 81.60% of the state's drivers are insured and there are 1.82 DUI incidents per 1,000 drivers.
Here are the 10 states with the worst drivers:
10. Missouri
- Percentage of insured drivers: 86.0%
- DUI Arrests per 1,000 drivers: 4.30
- Fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled: 1.28
9. Tennessee
- Percentage of insured drivers: 80.0 %
- DUI Arrests per 1,000 drivers: 3.63
- Fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled: 1.35
8. Alaska
- Percentage of insured drivers: 84.6 %
- DUI Arrests per 1,000 drivers: 5.80
- Fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled: 1.60
7. Arizona
- Percentage of insured drivers: 88.0%
- DUI Arrests per 1,000 drivers: 4.68
- Fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled: 1.45
6. Texas
- Percentage of insured drivers: 85.9%
- DUI Arrests per 1,000 drivers: 3.79
- Fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled: 1.40
5. Nevada
- Percentage of insured drivers: 89.4 %
- DUI Arrests per 1,000 drivers: 4.94
- Fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled: 1.23
4. Florida
- Percentage of insured drivers: 73.3 %
- DUI Arrests per 1,000 drivers: 2.17
- Fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled: 1.47
3. California
- Percentage of insured drivers: 84.8 %
- DUI Arrests per 1,000 drivers: 4.59
- Fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled: 1.13
2. Alabama
- Percentage of insured drivers: 81.6 %
- DUI Arrests per 1,000 drivers: 1.82
- Fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled: 1.56
1. Mississippi
- Percentage of insured drivers: 76.3%
- DUI Arrests per 1,000 drivers: 3.72
- Fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled: 1.69