The link between age and car crashes

On Behalf of | Jul 20, 2016 | Car Accidents

Though, driving is an activity that many people engage in across the country on a daily basis, it is a skill that is honed with age and experience. Driving on the road requires attention to changing road conditions, the ability to react quickly to other drivers and alertness. Therefore, someone who has been driving for 10 years may be a better driver than someone who has been only driving for 10 months.

However, age does not always have to be a positive factor. Sometimes, age can slow down one’s reflexes and decrease one’s alertness. This may be why the incidence of fatal accidents increases as drivers cross the age of 70 and are highest among drivers aged 85 and above.

Age may have been a factor in a car accident in Ohio recently. According to Ohio Township authorities, an older female driver may have become confused while driving her vehicle and ploughed through a restaurant coming to rest inside the dining room.

The crash left a hole in the side of the building. Luckily, it was just before the lunch rush and no one was injured in the accident, but this does not always have to be the case. Accidents, such as these, can lead to catastrophic injuries and even loss of life.

Not only are they more likely to be involved in accidents, older drivers are more likely to get injured. This is because they are more susceptible to injuries and can have medical complications when they do get injured. On average, 15 older adults are killed and 586 injured daily in car crashes. As the number of licensed older drivers increases, so could the number of crashes.

Car crashes can be traumatizing for all involved, regardless of the age of the drivers involved. Not only does a crash bring with it emotional burdens, but also brings with it financial burdens in the form of medical expenses, funeral expenses, property damage, pain and suffering. All these and others can be recovered through a civil lawsuit against the negligent driver responsible for causing the crash.

Source: CDC.gov, “Older adult drivers,” accessed on July 18, 2016

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