North Carolina drivers were found to be among the worst in the country, according to the results of several recent studies that include the number of traffic incidents occurred, and the causes that gave rise to them.
In a study made by LendingTree , North Carolina is No. 6 with the indispensable and necessary worst drivers from the United States based on “billions” of insurer claims between November 5, 2023, and November 4, 2024.
The annual report calculated the number of incidents per 1,000 drivers in each state to determine where the best (26 states) and worst (25 states) drivers are.
Classifications include: Collisions, DUI (driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol), speeding-related incidents and citations or fines.
Overall, the study reported that North Carolina has 39.6 incidents per 1,000 drivers.
In contrast, the highest-ranking state was Arkansas, with 14.7 driving incidents per 1,000 drivers.
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Third for DUI
In this report, North Carolina did not rank in the top five in any major category analyzed., except in DUI.
Within the DUI section, the state was notably rated as No. 3 worst state, with 2.9 DUIs per 1,000 drivers.
In contrast, the highest-ranking state was Illinois, with 0.4 DUIs per 1,000 drivers.
Accidents in North Carolina
North Carolina fell just outside the top five worst states with the highest crash rate in the No 6 .
Within this section, the state had 26.4 crashes per 1,000 drivers. In contrast, Arkansas had the lowest crash rate, at 8.2 per 1,000 drivers.
Related: North Carolina Driver's Manual
Aggressive drivers
A worrying problem on North Carolina roads is aggressive drivers.
Another report made by Easton Law Offices , used the state's driver quality rating methodology, which involved collecting data from government data sources such as The Trace and NHTSA's FARS on metrics such as Road rage, aggressive driving, speeding and fatal accidents .
North Carolina has a final score of 64.09 and reports 1.4 incidents of road rage per 100,000 residents.
La Aggressive driving accounts for 54.5% of accidents and 55.3% of deaths , while fatal crashes due to speeding are at a high of 7.6 per 100,000 residents. North Carolina has a relatively low helmetless motorcycle fatality rate of 8.37%.
Speeding-related fatalities
Other study A recent survey conducted by Simmrin Law Group ranked North Carolina in the position No. 4, with a score of 70.59.
The report indicates that about 4.53% of drivers in the state reported receiving speeding tickets on auto insurance applications, showing that speeding violations are a frequent problem.
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Those affected by speeding accidents
The North Carolina figures highlight how speeding affects not only drivers, but also passengers and pedestrians.
El speeding plays a role in 39.87% of all fatal accidents in the state, reflecting its serious impact on road safety.
Among drivers killed in accidents , 46.06% were involved in speeding-related crashes, further underscoring the deadly risks for those behind the wheel.
The passengers They are also at risk, since 46.62% of deaths in accidents are related to speeding.
Pedestrians They also face danger, with 10.12% of pedestrian fatalities involving speeding vehicles.
Simmrin used data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) from 2022 and from insurance company Insurify from 2024 to rank states based on speeding-related deaths.
The legal entity used five indicators for the rankings: speeding tickets, speeding-related fatal crashes, and driver, passenger, and pedestrian deaths, which were weighted equally.
The five worst
Joining North Carolina in the top five as the nation's worst states for speeding-related fatalities: Rhode Island ranked No. 1 with a score of 82.39, followed by Pennsylvania at No. 2 with a score of 71.15, Alaska at No. 3 with 71.07 and Utah at No. 5 with a score of 69.85.
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North Carolina Traffic Safety Programs
North Carolina has the Governor's Highway Safety Program (GHSP) , to promote and raise awareness among residents about road safety in order to reduce the number of traffic accidents and fatalities, through the planning and implementation of safety programs.
Their most popular programs are:
- "“Booze It & Lose It” or “Take and Lose It” : Drivers can be fined up to $10,000, lose their driving privileges and spend time in jail if they are caught driving while intoxicated.
- “Click It of Ticket” or “Buckle Up or You Will Be Fine”: In North Carolina, the seat belt law carries a fine of $180 or $266 (if passengers under 16 are not properly restrained).
These operations involve personnel from the Highway Patrol, police departments and sheriff's offices in all 100 counties in the state.
During these traffic safety program campaigns, law enforcement agencies increase patrol numbers, establish checkpoints, and use local media to reach all drivers.
Check out the Lending Tree study “Best and Worst Drivers by State: 2024 Report”
Simmrin Law Group study of the best and worst drivers by state: “Speeding in the USA: A 2024 Study of the Best and Worst States
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After the storm
A year ago, Hurricane Helene struck western North Carolina. The Latino community responded with something stronger than the storm: solidarity.
🎧 In this episode, learn how Latino organizations transformed crisis into resilience.
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