Imagine the horror of a preventable disaster that kills someone every 45 minutes, which is the staggering rhythm of lives lost to drunk driving in the US, claiming over 13,500 souls in 2022 alone and costing our nation $171 billion every year.
Key Takeaways
- In 2021, there were 13,384 fatalities in alcohol-impaired driving crashes in the US, representing 31% of all traffic fatalities
- Alcohol-impaired driving fatalities accounted for 10,511 deaths in 2020, a 1.1% decrease from 2019
- From 2016 to 2020, an average of 10,850 people died each year in drunk driving crashes
- In 2021, underage drunk drivers (under 21) caused 919 fatalities
- Males aged 21-34 accounted for 29% of all drunk driving fatalities as drivers in 2021
- Drivers aged 25-34 had the highest rate of fatal drunk driving crashes at 5.3 per 100,000 population
- From 1975 to 2021, alcohol involvement in teen crash deaths dropped from 48% to 20%
- Drunk driving fatalities peaked at 25,932 in 1982
- 2009 saw the lowest recent alcohol fatalities at 9,865
- In California 2021, 1,132 alcohol-impaired driving fatalities, highest in nation
- Texas 2021: 1,075 drunk driving deaths, second highest
- Florida 2021: 841 alcohol-related traffic fatalities
- Drunk driving crash deaths cost US economy $123.3 billion in 2020
- Average lifetime cost per drunk driving fatality: $2.9 million including QOL losses
- Alcohol-impaired crashes 3x more costly per crash than sober: $1.1M vs $0.3M
Drunk driving caused over thirteen thousand deaths in America during 2021.
Demographic Statistics
- In 2021, underage drunk drivers (under 21) caused 919 fatalities
- Males aged 21-34 accounted for 29% of all drunk driving fatalities as drivers in 2021
- Drivers aged 25-34 had the highest rate of fatal drunk driving crashes at 5.3 per 100,000 population
- Females represented 20% of drunk drivers in fatal crashes in 2021
- African American drivers had an alcohol-impaired fatal crash rate of 3.8 per 100,000 in 2021
- Children under 14 killed by drunk drivers: 199 total, with 60% passengers in other vehicles
- Elderly drivers over 65 had 2.1% involvement in alcohol fatal crashes despite 18% population share
- Hispanic fatalities in alcohol crashes: 2,789 in 2021
- Teen drivers aged 16-20 caused 15% of underage alcohol fatalities
- Male motorcyclists had 85% of alcohol-related motorcycle fatalities in 2021
- White non-Hispanic drivers: 70% of all drunk driving fatalities
- Drivers with BAC 0.08-0.14: 45% of impaired drivers in fatal crashes, mostly aged 25-44
- Repeat offenders under 30 caused 12% of recidivist drunk fatal crashes
- Pedestrian victims aged 21-34: 35% of all drunk driver pedestrian deaths
- Female passengers in drunk driver vehicles: 1,200 deaths in 2021
- Drivers aged 35-44: 4.8 fatal alcohol crashes per 100,000
- Native American/Alaska Native rate: 12.4 alcohol fatal crashes per 100,000, highest among groups
- Underage male drivers: 78% of under-21 drunk driving deaths
- Occupational data shows construction workers overrepresented in drunk fatal crashes by 15%
Demographic Statistics Interpretation
While young men hold the grim spotlight for causing these tragedies, these statistics soberly reveal a nationwide epidemic where no age, gender, or occupation is immune from the devastating ripple effect of a single irresponsible choice behind the wheel.
Economic and Comparative Impacts
- Drunk driving crash deaths cost US economy $123.3 billion in 2020
- Average lifetime cost per drunk driving fatality: $2.9 million including QOL losses
- Alcohol-impaired crashes 3x more costly per crash than sober: $1.1M vs $0.3M
- Drunk driving medical costs: $28 billion annually
- Lost productivity from drunk fatalities: $75 billion per year
- Drunk driving fatalities 2x higher than all murders combined annually
- Globally, WHO estimates 273,000 alcohol road deaths yearly vs US 13k
- Drunk driving kills more 1-34 year olds than all wars combined since 1980s
- Per capita, US drunk fatality rate 4.2 per 100k vs UK's 1.2
- Ignition interlocks reduce recidivism 67%, saving 1,900 lives yearly
- States with .08 BAC limit saw 4-24% fatality drop post-law
- Drunk driving 29% of traffic deaths vs distracted 8%
- Property damage from alcohol crashes: $44 billion annually
- Workplace losses: 17,000 drunk crash injuries costing $10B employer time
- Comparative: Firearms homicides 14k/year vs drunk driving 13k
- Global comparison: Australia's rate 1.9 per 100k vs US 4.0
- Per mile driven, alcohol crash risk 13x higher at BAC 0.08
- Drunk crashes 40% more likely multiple vehicles vs sober single
- Prevention ROI: $17 saved per $1 spent on sobriety checkpoints
Economic and Comparative Impacts Interpretation
Every year, drunk driving commits a staggeringly expensive and violent crime spree against the American public, one that empties our wallets, fills our hospitals, and steals more young lives than war, all while being almost entirely preventable.
National Fatalities
- In 2021, there were 13,384 fatalities in alcohol-impaired driving crashes in the US, representing 31% of all traffic fatalities
- Alcohol-impaired driving fatalities accounted for 10,511 deaths in 2020, a 1.1% decrease from 2019
- From 2016 to 2020, an average of 10,850 people died each year in drunk driving crashes
- In 2019, 10,142 people were killed in alcohol-impaired crashes
- Drunk driving caused 28 deaths per day on average in 2021
- Every 45 minutes, someone dies in a drunk driving crash in the US, based on 2021 data
- In 2022 preliminary data, alcohol-impaired fatalities rose to over 13,500
- From 2006 to 2015, drunk driving fatalities decreased by 37%, from 17,602 to 10,837
- 37% of all crash deaths in rural areas in 2021 involved alcohol
- Nighttime crash fatalities from 6pm to 6am had 55% alcohol involvement in 2021
- Weekend drunk driving fatalities made up 34% of all alcohol-impaired deaths in 2021
- Males accounted for 80% of drunk drivers involved in fatal crashes in 2021
- In 2021, 23% of drunk driving fatalities involved drivers with BAC over 0.15
- Passenger vehicle occupants comprised 68% of alcohol-impaired crash deaths in 2021
- Motorcyclists had a 27% alcohol involvement rate in fatal crashes in 2021
- Pedestrians killed by drunk drivers numbered 1,082 in 2021
- Children aged 0-14 saw 199 alcohol-impaired crash deaths in 2021
- Repeat drunk driving offenders were involved in 25% of alcohol fatal crashes
- In 2021, 70% of drunk drivers in fatal crashes were not wearing seatbelts
- Interstate highways saw 18% of alcohol-impaired fatalities in 2021
- Light truck occupants had 4,128 alcohol-related deaths in 2021
- From 2012-2021, alcohol-impaired fatalities increased by 18% overall
- In Q4 2021, drunk driving deaths rose 20% compared to Q4 2020
- Hispanic drivers had a drunk driving fatality rate of 4.6 per 100,000 in 2021
- 32 states had increases in drunk driving deaths from 2020-2021
- Average cost per drunk driving fatality is $1.3 million in medical and productivity losses
- Drunk driving fatalities cost the US $171 billion annually including property damage
- In 2021, 66% of drunk driving fatalities occurred between 9pm and 3am
- 41% of drunk driving deaths involved speeding as well in 2021
- Commercial drivers had 7% alcohol involvement in fatal crashes in 2021
National Fatalities Interpretation
Despite encouraging long-term progress, drunk driving remains a shockingly predictable and preventable nightly massacre, with nearly one life erased every hour due to decisions that are, in a word, criminal.
State and Local Data
- In California 2021, 1,132 alcohol-impaired driving fatalities, highest in nation
- Texas 2021: 1,075 drunk driving deaths, second highest
- Florida 2021: 841 alcohol-related traffic fatalities
- Montana highest rate at 8.2 alcohol deaths per 100,000 population 2021
- Wyoming 2021: 7.9 per 100k alcohol fatal crash rate
- South Carolina 2021: 7.4 per 100k
- New York City 2021: 112 drunk driving fatalities in metro area
- Illinois 2020: 344 alcohol fatalities, down 5% from prior year
- Michigan 2021: highest BAC crashes with avg 0.17 in fatal incidents
- Oregon 2021: 142 deaths, 40% on weekends
- Nevada Las Vegas 2021: 95 drunk fatalities in Clark County
- Alaska 2021: 9.2 per 100k rate, highest in US
- North Dakota 2021: 62 alcohol deaths in state with pop 780k
- Georgia 2021: 512 fatalities, 35% nighttime
- Pennsylvania 2021: 378 alcohol-impaired deaths
- Ohio 2021: 312 deaths
- Arizona 2021: 412 fatalities, highest per capita Southwest
- New Mexico 2021: 7.1 per 100k rate
- West Virginia 2021: 6.8 per 100k
- District of Columbia 2021: 22 alcohol fatalities despite low pop
State and Local Data Interpretation
While states are fiercely competing over everything from taxes to football teams, California and Texas are locked in a grim battle for first place in a category nobody should want to win: the most preventable drunk driving deaths in the nation.
Temporal Trends
- From 1975 to 2021, alcohol involvement in teen crash deaths dropped from 48% to 20%
- Drunk driving fatalities peaked at 25,932 in 1982
- 2009 saw the lowest recent alcohol fatalities at 9,865
- Post-COVID, 2021 saw a 16% increase in alcohol fatalities from 2019
- Decade trend 2012-2021: +18% in alcohol-impaired deaths
- Holiday periods: New Year's Day 2019-2021 averaged 150 alcohol deaths per holiday
- Summer months June-August: 32% of annual drunk fatalities 2016-2020
- BAC >=0.08 involvement rose from 25% in 2000 to 31% in 2021
- Ignition interlock laws correlated with 7% drop in fatalities per state 2000-2020
- From 1999-2021, overall traffic deaths down 10%, but alcohol down 35%
- 2015-2020: Nighttime alcohol fatalities up 5% despite overall decline
- Pre-MLC (1984): 50% of crashes alcohol-related, now 30%
- 2020 pandemic dip: alcohol deaths down 2% while sober up 10%
- Monthly trend: December highest at 1,300 alcohol deaths avg 2016-2020
- 1982-2021: 1 million lives saved by drunk driving countermeasures
- Under-21 fatalities down 82% since 1982 peak
- Repeat offender fatalities down 55% with enhanced penalties 1990-2020
- Motorcycle alcohol deaths doubled from 2000 to 2021 despite seatbelt laws
- Rural alcohol fatalities up 25% 2010-2021 vs urban stable
Temporal Trends Interpretation
We've learned to drive far more soberly than our parents, but each holiday, summer, and rural road reminds us that the fatal allure of mixing drinking and driving is a stubborn ghost we have not fully exorcised.
Sources & References
- Reference 1NHTSAnhtsa.govVisit source
- Reference 2CRASHSTATScrashstats.nhtsa.dot.govVisit source
- Reference 3MADDmadd.orgVisit source
- Reference 4CDCcdc.govVisit source
- Reference 5AAAFOUNDATIONaaafoundation.orgVisit source
- Reference 6NSCnsc.orgVisit source
- Reference 7INJURYFACTSinjuryfacts.nsc.orgVisit source
- Reference 8FMCSAfmcsa.dot.govVisit source
- Reference 9IIHSiihs.orgVisit source
- Reference 10BLSbls.govVisit source
- Reference 11DMVdmv.ca.govVisit source
- Reference 12TXDOTtxdot.govVisit source
- Reference 13FLHSMVflhsmv.govVisit source
- Reference 14DOTdot.state.wy.usVisit source
- Reference 15SCDPSscdps.govVisit source
- Reference 16NYCnyc.govVisit source
- Reference 17IDOTidot.illinois.govVisit source
- Reference 18MICHIGANmichigan.govVisit source
- Reference 19OREGONoregon.govVisit source
- Reference 20LVMPDlvmpd.comVisit source
- Reference 21DOTdot.alaska.govVisit source
- Reference 22DOTdot.nd.govVisit source
- Reference 23GSPgsp.ga.govVisit source
- Reference 24PENNDOTpenndot.pa.govVisit source
- Reference 25OHIOSTATEPATROLohiostatepatrol.govVisit source