September is the Worst Month for Car Accident Deaths

Many people might guess the time of year where most accidents occur.  The Holidays would be a good guess – people are usually in a hurry to get things done during the holidays.  Memorial Day, the 4^th of July, and Christmas are just a few holidays where drivers might be distracted by their activities and more inclined to get in a Florida car accident.

But actually, the worst time of the year for a traffic death to occur is right now – the month of September.  A recent study from Sivak Applied Research studied car accident deaths from 2009 through 2018.  During that time period, the highest rate of car accident deaths during the year turned out to be during the month of September.  After September, October was the second most dangerous month for car accident deaths.  Dr. Michael Sivak identified mild weather in September as being one of the factors leading to more car fatalities as people drive their cars faster when the weather is nice.

Our Fort Lauderdale Car Accident Lawyer Alerts You of the Dangers September Brings

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, an independent, nonprofit scientific and educational organization dedicated to reducing car accident deaths and injuries, has also studied car accident deaths, and in which month the most car accident deaths occur.  The Institute studied traffic deaths from 1998 through 2014 and also identified September as the most dangerous month.

Some of the reasons identified for September being the most dangerous month were:

1. Weather – when the weather is nice, more people are on the streets. This includes cars, bikers, pedestrians, skateboarders, and everyone else that wants to take advantage of the nice weather.
2. Schools are back in session – September is usually the first full month that schools are back in session. Parents driving their grade school children to school, high school students driving to high school, and college kids all return in September.  These groups are some of the highest risk drivers as they often drive distracted, either by children or social media devices, and the younger drivers tend to drive faster, leading to more serious accidents.
3. It gets darker earlier in September – September is when the late summer light starts to end, and the days get shorter. Less experienced drivers often have difficulty driving when dark leading to serious car accidents.
4. Labor Day Weekend also plays a part – The car accident studies showed the average number of traffic deaths on each day of the Labor Day Weekend – Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday – was 122. By comparison, the average for the 4^th of July holiday weekend was only 132.

How to Prevent South Florida Auto Accidents

The leading causes of Florida car accident deaths are:

1. Speeding
2. Failing to Obey Traffic Signal/Light
3. Texting While Driving
4. Drunk Driving/DUI
5. Bad Weather
6. Falling Asleep at the wheel

The good news is that you can protect yourself from these leading causes of Florida car accident deaths by taking some simple safety measures:

1. Obey the Speed Limit
2. Slow Down when in Bad Weather
3. Wear a seatbelt
4. Don’t Drink and Drive
5. Don’t Text and Drive

For more information about Florida car accident injuries and wrongful deaths claims, contact the Maus Law Firm for a free consultation at 954.784.6310.