Car accidents happen far too often, and far too many people lose their lives.
Every time you get behind the wheel, it’s likely that you probably do not think about the odds of getting into a serious accident. That’s something that happens to someone else. It’s something you see on the news.
The reality, though, is that accidents are so common that reports claim an average of more than 37,000 people lose their lives on an annual basis. More than 1,600 of them are under 15 years old and are too young to even drive. When looking at teens, about 8,000 of the deaths involve these young, inexperienced drivers.
The thing about 37,000 people is that it’s such a big number that it’s often hard to comprehend the total loss of life. For perspective, it’s roughly the same as the enrollment at Michigan State University. It’s just slightly more than the University of Arizona (35,000). It’s slightly less than Arizona State University (42,000).
If the entire student population at a major university passed away, it would rightly be a massive tragedy that would leave people asking all sorts of questions. And yet that is the same risk that we take on year after year on the roads, and many drivers have no idea just how bad it is.
Plus, that’s just looking at fatal accidents. Remember that another 2.35 million people become disabled or suffer serious injuries every year.
You need to know what these risks look like. If you do get injured in an accident, or if a loved one passes away, you also need to know what next steps to take.
