Everybody knows that driving can be dangerous, but nobody really thinks about it until they are in an accident and are already hurt. But here are some shocking traffic statistics that should make you think twice about going through life unprepared for a driving accident.
Tennessee is a great state, but it definitely has its fair share of traffic accidents. In Knox County alone, there were 12,498 accidents between 2011 and 2015. That is eight crashes per day. For just one county! This makes it inevitable that everyone in that county will, sooner or later, get into a driving accident of their own. With numbers like that, there is no sense in trying to argue that it won’t happen, there is only sense in trying to plan for when it does happen.
But Knox County could just be an outlier, so what about the statistics for Tennessee as a whole? In 2016 alone, Tennessee has had more than 48,000 traffic accidents. And those numbers are only current as of March 31st! That is more than 500 accidents a day for the state, and with those kinds of numbers, getting into a traffic accident is something that simply has to be expected to happen sooner or later. The only thing that can be controlled is the level of preparation.
In 2015 alone, there were over 50,000 injuries that were caused by traffic accidents. Of these 50,000, more than 7,000 were considered to be incapacitating. That means 7,000 last year were unable to work or take care of their families because of an accident that may not have even been their fault. They may not have been able to do anything to stop the accident, but they could have done something to plan for their situation after the accident.
Many people hear these numbers and think that they don’t apply to them, because they are good drivers. Unfortunately, driving talent can’t protect from everything. In the past 11 years, more than 72,000 accidents have been caused by drunk drivers, and another 166,000 were caused by distracted drivers in the past 10 years. It doesn’t matter how skilled of a driver someone is, there are always going to be circumstances on the road that just can’t be helped.
The reality is that everyone will, sooner or later, get into a traffic accident. It’s just statistics. But that doesn’t mean that there is nothing to be done about it. If someone has to be in an accident, they can at least have a plan. Know what you will do when you get into an accident. What if you’re injured? What will you do for money if you can’t work? These are the kinds of questions that people look to personal injury attorneys to answer, and for good reason. Because no matter how safe or careful you are, there is always going to come a rainy day when you need someone in your corner.
