Drunk Driving Statistics 2024

Les MastersonDeputy Editor, Insurance

Les Masterson is a deputy editor and insurance analyst at Forbes Advisor. He has been a journalist, reporter, editor and content creator for more than 25 years. He has covered insurance for a decade, including auto, home, life and health. Before covering insurance, Les was a news editor and reporter for Patch and Community Newspaper Company and also covered health care, mortgages, credit cards and personal loans for multiple websites.

Kelly Anne SmithLead Editor, Growth Projects

Kelly Anne has over six years of experience with reporting and editing in the personal finance space. Her work has been featured in national publications including Reader's Digest, CNBC and Forbes. She has a background in business education and a master's degree in international communication studies.

Les Masterson,

Les MastersonDeputy Editor, Insurance

Kelly Anne Smith

Kelly Anne SmithLead Editor, Growth Projects

Deputy Editor, Insurance, Lead Editor, Growth Projects

Patricia Louiseditor

Patricia Louis is a recent graduate of the University of Delaware Lerner College of Business and Economics. She has written for the Philadelphia Wings NLL team and worked in media relations for the Philadelphia Flyers NHL team. Currently, she serves as the Optimization Editor at Forbes Advisor, showcasing her expertise in journalism, communications and business.

Fact Checked

Patricia Louis

Patricia Louiseditor

editor

Fact Checked

Updated: Jan 3, 2024, 4:37am

Editorial Note: We earn a commission from partner links on Forbes Advisor. Commissions do not affect our editors' opinions or evaluations.

Getty

About 37 people in America die each day in drunk-driving car crashes. That equals one alcohol-impaired driving fatality every 39 minutes.^[1]

Over the 10-year period from 2012 to 2021, about 10,850 people died each year in drunk driving car accidents.^[1]

These tragic car accidents involving drunk driving are on the rise nationwide. In 2021, 13,384 people died in drunk-driving crashes—a 14% increase from 2020.^[1]

Overview of Drunk Driving Statistics

Here’s a roundup of statistics about drunk driving:

Nearly one-third (31%) of car crash deaths in the U.S. in 2021 involved drunk drivers.^[1]
In 2020, the yearly cost of fatal alcohol-related car crashes was roughly $123.3 billion (including medical costs and cost estimates for lives lost).^[2]
Fatalities in alcohol-impaired-driving crashes increased by 14.2% (11,718 to 13,384) from 2020 to 2021, compared to a 10.1% increase in all traffic deaths between 2020 and 2021.^[1]
In 2021, the percentage of alcohol-impaired-driving fatalities among all traffic fatalities ranged from a high of 44% in Montana to a low of 20% in Mississippi.^[1]
The rate of alcohol impairment among drivers involved in fatal crashes is 2.8 times higher at night than during the day (31% versus 11%).^[1]
In 2021, 16% of drivers involved in fatal crashes during the week were alcohol-impaired, compared to 28% on weekends.^[1]
In 2021, there were four male alcohol-impaired drivers for every one female alcohol-impaired driver involved in fatal crashes (9,693 versus 2,531).^[1]
In 2021, there were 60,904 drivers involved in fatal car crashes, and an estimated 12,762 (21%) were alcohol-impaired.^[1]
The percentages of alcohol-impaired drivers involved in fatal car crashes ranged from 14% in Georgia and Mississippi to 34% in Montana.^[1]
In 2021, the percentage of alcohol-impaired drivers involved in fatal crashes was highest for motorcycle riders (28%), followed by drivers of passenger cars (24%), light trucks (20%) and large trucks (3%).^[1]
Of the 1,184 children aged 14 and younger killed in traffic accidents in 2021, 25% (294) died in drunk driving crashes.^[1]
In 2021, 67% of alcohol-impaired driving deaths (9,027) involved at least one driver with a blood alcohol concentration of .15 or higher.^[1]
The percentage of fatalities in crashes involving a driver with a blood alcohol concentration of .15 or higher ranged from a high of 31% in Montana to a low of 13% in Mississippi, compared to the national average of 21%.^[1]
Alcohol-impaired drivers are most likely to be involved in fatal car accidents in July (9.7%), August (9.6%) and October (9.5%).^[1]
In 2021, the total number of alcohol-impaired-driving deaths was highest in Texas (1,906), followed by California (1,370) and Florida (1,019). Washington, D.C. had the lowest number of drunk driving fatalities (12).^[1]
4.6% of teens surveyed in the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention High School Youth Risk Behavior Survey said they drove while drinking within the past 30 days. That included 5.8% of males. More than 14% of teens surveyed admitted to riding in a car with a driver who had been drinking.

The Worst States for Drunk Driving

A Forbes Advisor analysis found that Montana tops the list of worst states for drunk driving, while New Jersey has the lowest rate of drunk driving.^[3]

Key Findings

Four of the 10 worst states for drunk driving are in the West: Montana, Wyoming, Oregon and New Mexico.^[3]
Six of the 10 states with the lowest rates of drunk driving are in the Northeast, including New Jersey, Delaware, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania and Vermont.^[3]
More than two-fifths (42.2%) of drivers have witnessed a friend or family member drive after they’ve had more than one alcoholic drink, according to a Forbes Advisor survey of 10,000 licensed drivers.^[3]

Drunk Driving Statistics by Age

In 2021, the 21-to-24-year-old age group and the 25-to-34-year-old age group had the highest percentages of drunk drivers involved in fatal crashes (27% each), followed by 35-to-44-year-old drivers (23%).^[1]

Drunk driving has a big impact on teen drivers. In 2021, 17% of young drivers ages 15 to 20 who died in car crashes had blood alcohol concentrations of .08 or higher.^[1]

DUIs and Car Insurance Rates

A DUI conviction can cause your car insurance rates to increase an average of 71%, based on our analysis of average rates from top auto insurers.

An insurance company will typically pull your motor vehicle record when you buy a policy or before renewal time, and will adjust rates based on tickets, convictions and other factors.

Driver	Average car insurance cost per year	Percent increase in average cost due to infraction
Good driver	$2,026
One accident causing property damage	$2,994	+48%
One accident causing injury	$3,009	+49%
One speeding ticket	$2,533	+25%
Caught driving without insurance	$2,364	+17%
One DUI	$3,363	+66%
Poor credit	$3,847	+90%

Source: Quadrant Information Services, based on national average rates for a 40-year-old female driver insuring a new Toyota RAV4 with liability coverage of 100/300/100, uninsured motorist coverage, and collision and comprehensive coverage.

Strategies for Drunk Driving Prevention

Here are five initiatives that aim to prevent drunk driving:

Sobriety checkpoints by law enforcement officers reduce fatalities, injury accidents and property damage accidents on the road.
On the Saturday before Labor Day, Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) teams up with law enforcement officers to host media events and promote awareness.
Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over, the campaign from NHTSA that runs from Dec. 13 through Jan. 1, aims to educate drivers about the dangers of drunk driving.
In states that require ignition interlocks for first-time drunk drivers, there have been declines in drunk driving fatalities. A driver must blow on an ignition interlock, which is the size of a cell phone, to start the car. If there is more than a low amount of alcohol in their system, the car won’t start.
With high-visibility saturation patrols, a large number of law enforcement officers patrol a specific area where drunk driving crashes are common.