Despite what anecdotal evidence and Facebook memes might suggest, Florida isn’t the most dangerous state to drive in, but it’s certainly not the safest.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) early estimate of motor vehicle traffic fatalities for the first half of 2023 put Florida at No. 8 in the country for the highest fatalities per 100,000 residents at 1.52, which is 22.58% higher than the national average of 1.24.
Mississippi, South Carolina and Arizona topped the list at 1.73, 1.73 and 1.71, respectively.
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The NHTSA’s final look at 2023 has yet to be released, but we can look at the number of Florida’s fatal crashes for the rest of the year thanks to data published by Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV).
The FLHSMV provides a crash dashboard featuring data from traffic crash reports around the state. The NHTSA’s preliminary estimates put the number of crashes in Florida at 1,772 between January and June last year. The state ended with 3,157 total fatal crashes.