The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) conducted a comprehensive study on motorbike accidents that showed certain trends, factors, and demographics of victims.
These are some of the highlights of the study:
• In 2005, 41 percent of motorbike riders who died have BAC (blood alcohol content) levels of more than 08 g/dL; 27 percent have BAC levels of .08 g/dL; and 7 percent have lower BAC levels which ranged from .01 to .07 g/dL. With this result, alcohol was the major cause of deaths among motorbike riders.
• Seventy-seven percent or majority of fatalities were Caucasians/Whites, followed by African-Americans at 9 percent, with Hispanics at 7 percent, and Native Americans, 1 percent.
• Forty-five percent of motorbike fatalities were not wearing helmets at the time of the accident.
• Thirty-seven out of 100 deaths could have been prevented if motorbike operators and passengers were wearing helmets.
• The states of New Hampshire, Iowa, and Illinois do not have helmet laws. Also, majority of states do not require all motorbike operators and passengers to wear head protection (some age group are excluded).
• Only 20 states have universal mandatory helmet laws.
• There is no standard requirement for other safety motor gears (except helmets) such as gloves, armor, kneepads, and boots.
• In 2006, 68 percent of motorcyclists in states which have helmet laws were using government-compliant head protection compared to 37 percent in states which do not have helmet laws. With this finding, the researchers suggested that helmet use rate was lower in jurisdiction where not all drivers were required to wear one.
• Over the last decade, approximately 90 percent of fatalities were male.
• Operators accounted for 90 percent of motorcycle-related deaths compared to 10 percent among passengers. This trend is consistent over the past several years.
• Fifty-five percent of motorcycle-related deaths involved multi-vehicle crashes compared to 45 percent killed in single vehicle crashes.
• Majority of motorcycle-related deaths were aged 40 years and older. This can be explained with the high rate of motorbike ownership among this age group.
• In 2007, more than 7 million motorcycles were registered in the US.
• More women are now using motorbikes compared to the past decade.
• One out of four motorcycle operators have an invalid or expired driving license at the time of the accident.
• Forty-one percent of motorcycle-related deaths involved 501-1,000 cc engine size compared to 38 percent of fatalities involving 1,001-1,500 cc engine size.
• While fatalities involving cars are declining, the number of deaths among motorbike riders is continuously on the rise over the past several years.
• Motorcyclists only represented 0.5 percent of all vehicles miles traveled in 2007, but they accounted for approximately 13 percent of traffic fatalities in the country.
Our expert
personal injury lawyers are experienced in handling
vehicle accident cases such as motorbike accidents. For consultation, visit our website and avail of our free case evaluation.
