In general, automobiles continue to get safer. But there are still thousands of car accidents each year in Florida. In fact, there are in excess of 60,000 motor vehicle crashes annually in Miami-Dade County, based on the most recent statistics from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.
Looking at the three most recent years on file–2014 to 2016–there has been an increase in total accidents of about 6.5 percent in Miami-Dade, from 60,165 crashes in 2014 to 64,070 crashes in 2016. In terms of total casualties, there were 33,400 people injured and 294 people killed in car accidents during 2016. This represents an increase from 2014, which saw 31,752 injuries and 280 fatalities, respectively. However, it is worth noting that there was a significant decline–more than 13 percent–between auto accident deaths in 2015 (339) and the 294 reported fatalities in 2016.
How Common Are Motorcycle, Pedestrian, and Bicycle Accidents?
Motor vehicle accidents are not limited to collisions between cars or passenger trucks. In 2016, there were 1,117 reported motorcycle crashes in Miami-Dade County, which injured 835 individuals and killed 398 others. Additionally, there were 1,449 pedestrian crashes, which yielded 1,286 injuries and 84 deaths. There were also 758 reported bicycle accidents, resulting in 698 injuries and 17 fatalities.
If there’s a silver lining to these numbers, it’s in the fact that accidents and casualties in all three of these categories–motorcycle, pedestrian, and bicycle accidents–were significantly lower in 2016 than in 2014 and 2015. In fact, over the reported three-year period, annual motorcycle crashes dropped 14.5 percent, and bicycle accidents declined 23.4 percent.
How Frequently Is Alcohol a Factor?
Car accidents occur for many reasons: speeding, distracted driving, failure to obey road signs, et cetera. But one of the first things many ask when they hear about a crash is, “Was one of the drivers drunk?” According to the numbers, there were 347 car crashes in Miami-Dade County where alcohol was a “confirmed.” In 15 other cases, drugs other than alcohol were confirmed as a factor in the accident.
Although the number of alcohol-confirmed crashes has actually declined–there were 11.25 percent fewer such crashes in 2015 than 2016–it is important to note the state’s figures may not accurately account for all alcohol- and drug-related accidents. There are many crashes where alcohol was probably a factor but for one reason or another–such as the driver was never formally arrested for DWI–it was never assigned by law enforcement as a contributing factor in the accident.
Do Younger Drivers Get Into More Accidents?
Finally, there are some telling numbers with respect to the age of drivers involved in Miami-Dade car crashes. More than 10,000 accidents each year, on average, are caused by drivers between the ages of 21 and 24. For drivers ages 18 to 20, there were 6,545 reported crashes in 2016. And for the youngest teen drivers–those between the ages of 15 and 17–there were 1,533 accidents in 2016.
Speak With a Miami Auto Accident Lawyer Today
Regardless of a driver’s age, alcohol impairment, or other characteristics, any car crash is a serious matter for the innocent victims whose lives are impacted. If you have been injured in any kind of motor vehicle accident and need advice from an experienced Miami personal injury attorney, contact Dolan Dobrinsky Rosenblum Bluestein, LLP, at 305-371-2692 today to schedule a consultation.