Free Legal Consultations Available 24/7
206-727-4000 or 866-595-3565

What are the common causes of motorcycle crashes?

motorcycle accident attorney

The following is a collection of motorcycle accident statistics, according to data from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).

  • The failure of motorists to detect and recognize motorcycles in traffic is the predominating cause of motorcycle accidents.
  • The driver of the other vehicle involved in collision with the motorcycle did not see the motorcycle before the collision, or did not see the motorcycle until too late to avoid the collision.
  • 54% of all reported fatal motorcycle crashes occurring nationally in 2008 involved multiple vehicle crashes and 46% occurred in single-vehicle crashes.
  • Five crash types account for 86% of fatal motorcycle crashes: motorcycle exiting the roadway (41%), motorcycle or other vehicle runs traffic control (18%), head-on collision with another vehicle (11%), car turns in front of motorcycle (8%), and motorcycle goes down in roadway (7%).
  • Forty-three percent of deaths in single-vehicle motorcycle crashes in 2008 included drivers with blood alcohol concentration at or above 0.08%.
  • 91% of motorcycle deaths in 2008 were males. 64% of the females who died in a motorcycle crash were passengers. 99% of males who died were drivers.

Sources:s of Davis

"Traffic Safety Facts, Washington State, 2009-2013." National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. US Department of Transportation. Web. http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/departments/nrd-30/ncsa/STSI/53_WA/2013/53_WA_2013.htm.

"Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS)." IIHS-HLDI: Crash Testing & Highway Safety. Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). Web. http://www.iihs.org/.

"Motorcycle Accident Fatality Facts." Highway Loss Data Institute. Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). Web. http://www.iihs.org/iihs/topics/t/motorcycles/fatalityfacts/motorcycles.

"Injury Prevention & Control: Motor Vehicle Safety." National Center for Injury Prevention and Control,. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 18 June 2012. Web. http://www.cdc.gov/motorvehiclesafety/mc/index.htm.

"Motorcycle Driving Safety." National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. US Department of Transportation. Web. http://www.nhtsa.gov/Safety/Motorcycles.

"National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Office of Vehicle Safety Research." National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. US Department of Transportation. Web. http://www.nhtsa.gov/Research.

Law Group, P.S.

Chris Davis
Connect with me
Chris Davis is the founder of Davis Law Group, P.S. in Seattle, WA.