The High Cost of Motor Vehicle Injuries

Motor vehicles traffic crashes are the leading cause of unintentional injury death in the U.S.¹ Each year, car crashes cause over 40,000 deaths, more than 250,000 injuries requiring hospitalization and more than three million visits to emergency departments.^{2, 3} For employers, this equates to serious injury or death of employees, as well as substantial direct and indirect costs. Most crashes can be avoided if drivers and passengers take simple steps to reduce the likelihood of a crash and increase the chances of surviving a crash.

Economic Costs of Motor Vehicle Accidents:
Motor vehicle-related deaths and injuries cost the United States a total of $230 billion dollars per year (in 2000 dollars).⁴ Of which,

• $34 billion was spent on medical and emergency service costs;
• $61 billion was a result of lost productivity in the workplace; and
• $5 billion was lost due to workplace administrative costs (in year 2000 dollars).

What Employers Can Do:

• Provide employees with safe driving tips:⁵
  • Always use a seat belt. The single most effective way to reduce traffic injuries and fatalities is by wearing a seat belt.
  • Discourage making cell phone calls, texting, or multi-tasking in any way while driving. Distracted driving is a factor in 25 to 30% of all accidents.
  • Provide comprehensive drug and alcohol counseling and treatment to prevent intoxicated driving and improve the health of employees. Alcohol, prescription drugs and illegal drugs can impair reaction times, coordination and alertness and should not be used while driving. Alcohol is involved in 40% of all motor vehicle deaths.
  • Avoid driving while fatigued; employees should be well rested, sober, and alert on the roads.
  • Secure loose items in the vehicle, they may become projectiles in the event of a crash and can injure the driver or passengers.

For more tips to help reduce motor vehicle accidents, please read the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's publication Guidelines for Employers to Reduce Motor Vehicle Crashes and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health's (NIOSH) publication Work-Related Roadway Crashes — Challenges and Opportunities for Prevention.

References

1. CDC/National Center for Health Statistics. FastStats: All injuries. Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/FASTATS/injury.htm. Accessed May 13, 2009
2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Web-based injury statistics query and reporting system (WISQARS) 2005. National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Available at: www.cdc.gov/ncipc/wisqars. Accessed May 13, 2009.
3. Finkelstein E, Corso P, Miller T. Incidence and economic burden of injuries in the United States, 2000. New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2006.
4. Blincoe L, Seay A, Zaloshnja E, Miller T, Romano E, Luchter S, et al. The economic impact of motor vehicle crashes, 2000. Washington, DC: Dept of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA); 2002.
5. Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Guidelines for employers to reduce motor vehicle crashes. Available at: http://www.osha.gov/Publications/motor_vehicle_guide.pdf. Accessed May 14, 2009.