Analysis Reveals Tesla Has the Highest Accident Rate Among Car Brands

Dec 18, 2023 11:49 PM EST

Tesla drivers have been thrust into the spotlight with a concerning revelation - they possess the highest accident rate among automobile enthusiasts. Even though Tesla is relentlessly pursuing full self-driving technology, recent crash statistics show that Tesla drivers are more likely to collide than Ram and Subaru drivers.

Accident Rate Analysis

Insurance-related events involving Tesla drivers often put them near the top, which raises questions about how safe and responsible they are as drivers. With this data-driven look into a major auto problem, Tesla's track record on road safety is called into question.

Torque News shared data from QuoteWizard by LendingTree Insurance. The news stated that Tesla's well-known high insurance premiums can be attributed, in part, to the accident frequency among its drivers.

Tens of millions of insurance quotes from QuoteWizard by LendingTree were looked at by the researchers between November 14, 2022, and November 14, 2023. To identify the superior and inferior drivers based on car brands, they computed the rate of driving-related incidents per 1,000 drivers for each brand across all 50 states.

These incidents encompassed accidents, DUIs, speeding violations, and citations. The 30 brands that had the most insurance quotes were the focus of their research. Among these brands is Tesla.

The Lending Tree analyses categories that fell under:

-Possessing faulty equipment or choosing the wrong road

-Not signaling

- Driving without valid insurance or a proper license, or falsifying a license

- Incorrect usage of lanes, passing, or turning

-Violations related to safety measures, tailgating, and overtaking a bus

- Hit-and-run incidents involving a bicyclist or pedestrian

- Not giving way to a vehicle or pedestrian
- Negligence or recklessness
-Comprehensive or other citations

The Findings

The Lending Tree through its QuoteWizard discovered that Tesla drivers exhibit the highest accident rate, recording 23.54 accidents for every 1,000 drivers. Ram (22.76) and Subaru (20.90) are the only other brands surpassing a rate of 20.00 accidents per 1,000 drivers. As reported in the Auto Channel, out of the 30 car brands scrutinized, Ram stands out for having the least favorable overall driver performance. On a national scale, Ram drivers experienced 32.90 driving-related incidents for every 1,000 drivers. Tesla (31.13) and Subaru (30.09) were the only other brands with driver incident rates surpassing 30.00.

A closer examination reveals that Ram holds the distinction of having the worst drivers in 23 states. This means that Ram drivers had the highest incident rates of any brand analyzed in nearly half of all U.S. states. Tesla drivers were the worst in 11 states, making them the only other brand in double digits.

BMW drivers exhibit a significantly higher DUI rate. BMW drivers registered 3.13 DUIs for every 1,000 drivers, which is nearly twice the DUI rate among Ram drivers (1.72), the next-highest ranking auto brand.

Conversely, Mercury emerges as the brand with the best drivers during the analyzed period. Nationally, Mercury drivers recorded 15.82 incidents per 1,000 drivers, which is less than half the incident rate among Ram drivers. Pontiac (16.24) and Saturn (16.84) followed closely behind.