Summary
A new study analyzing insurance, medical, emergency response, and repair costs ranks California as the most expensive state in the U.S. for traffic accidents. The research highlights wide cost disparities nationwide, showing how location can significantly impact the financial burden drivers face after a crash.
New research into the costs associated with the aftermath of traffic accidents has identified the states where costs are estimated to be the most expensive.
The study by Florida personal injury attorneys Fasig Brooks analyzed factors that often impact the expense of a traffic accident. The factors considered for each state were the average cost of the following: the annual minimum liability insurance premium and annual full-coverage premium, ambulance cost per urban mile and rural mile, hospital expenses per day, and vehicle repair labor and parts costs.
These factors were then collated into an index that revealed the ranking of the most expensive to the least expensive states.
According to the findings, California is the state where the expenses are highest for a traffic accident, receiving a score of 74.99 out of 100 in the index.
The study identified that California's average hospital expenses per day are the highest in the US, at $4,337, 52% higher than the average across all states ($2,848 US average). Additionally, the state ranked at the top for the most expensive ambulance costs for the average costs of both urban and rural miles ($1,082 and $1,450 per mile, respectively).
The second-most expensive state is New York, with an index score of 74.57 out of 100.
The findings identified that the stand-out expense in the state is the average annual minimum liability insurance premium, at $2,221, a staggering 166% higher than the national average found by the study ($836 US average). The average annual full-coverage premium of $4,112 was also found to be 59% higher than the state average identified by the study ($2,585 US average).
New Jersey ranked third in the study, receiving an index score of 65.78 out of 100.
Similar to California, the factors contributing to New Jersey’s high ranking are mostly the average cost of urban and rural ambulance fees, for which the state also ranked third in the US for these individual factors. These were identified to be an average of $1,058 per urban mile and $1,420 per rural mile.
According to the study, Colorado has the fourth-highest expenses related to traffic accidents in the US, with an index score of 63.17 out of 100.
The findings identified that Colorado has the third-highest costs for vehicle parts in the US, at an average of $268, and the fifth-highest vehicle repair labor costs at $149. The average hospital expenses of $3,567 per day were also estimated to be around 25% higher than the national average identified by the study.
Connecticut rounds out the top five most expensive states, with an overall index score of 61.80 out of 100, according to the study.
It was identified that Connecticut has the highest average cost of vehicle parts of any state in the US, at around $282, which is 16% higher than the average across all states ($244 US average). The average cost of insurance premiums and hospital expenses was also estimated to be higher than the state averages identified.
Maryland (59.79), Florida (58.39), Washington (57.39), Nevada (56.76) and Oregon (56.32) also rank among the ten most expensive states.
Top Ten Most Expensive States for Traffic Accidents
| Rank |
State |
Overall Index Score (/100) |
| 1 |
California |
74.99 |
| 2 |
New York |
74.57 |
| 3 |
New Jersey |
65.78 |
| 4 |
Colorado |
63.17 |
| 5 |
Connecticut |
61.8 |
| 6 |
Maryland |
59.79 |
| 7 |
Florida |
58.39 |
| 8 |
Washington |
57.39 |
| 9 |
Nevada |
56.76 |
| 10 |
Oregon |
56.32 |
The study also identified the states where it is estimated to be the least expensive in the US to have a traffic accident.
Maine takes the top spot with an index score of only 22.69 out of 100. Of all the factors analyzed in the study, Maine has the lowest average annual full-coverage premium costs in the US, at $1,460, 44% lower than the average across all states. Other factors, including the average annual minimum liability premium and vehicle parts costs, were also found to be among the lowest in the country.
Iowa follows in second place with a score of 23.02 out of 100. The state’s costs were found to be low across all factors compared to other states, except for vehicle repair labor costs ($146), but these are estimated to be only $3 over the average across all states.
The third state among those with the lowest estimated costs associated with a traffic accident is Ohio, with an index score of 24.10 out of 100. Mississippi and Vermont were also found to have low costs across the factors analyzed and complete the five least expensive states, with index scores of 27.19 and 27.81 out of 100, respectively.
Rounding out the top ten least expensive states are West Virginia (27.84), Wisconsin (29.44), Arkansas (29.81), Alabama (30.82), and Indiana (30.96).
Top Ten Least Expensive States for Traffic Accidents
| Rank |
State |
Overall Index Score (/100) |
| 1 |
Maine |
22.69 |
| 2 |
Iowa |
23.02 |
| 3 |
Ohio |
24.1 |
| 4 |
Mississippi |
27.19 |
| 5 |
Vermont |
27.81 |
| 6 |
West Virginia |
27.84 |
| 7 |
Wisconsin |
29.44 |
| 8 |
Arkansas |
29.81 |
| 9 |
Alabama |
30.82 |
| 10 |
Indiana |
30.96 |
An expert from Fasig Brooks commented on the findings: "The findings highlight the significant differences between regions in the US, highlighting that location can greatly influence the financial burden people may face in the unfortunate event of a road incident.
“As the study identifies, those in more expensive states like California and New York may find that the costs associated with insuring and repairing a car, as well as associated health costs if an accident were to result in injury, may require more careful budgeting than those in states with lower expenses, such as Maine or Iowa.
“However, regardless of where you live, preparing for potential accidents by budgeting and exploring insurance options can help you avoid costly financial setbacks.”
The index was compiled using seven factors. The raw data for each factor was cleaned, checked, and standardized on the same scale from 0 to 10, where 0 and 10 represent the worst and best values present in the data to allow for accurate comparisons between factors.
A weighting was then assigned to each factor reflecting its importance within the analysis. The factors, their sources, and their percentage weightings are listed below
Once the weightings were assigned, the total score for the factors was calculated, producing an overall index score out of 100 for each state, upon which the final ranking is based. A higher score in the final ranking corresponds to a more expensive state to have a car accident.
The factors were weighted by 15% each, except for average ambulance costs per urban mile and per rural mile, which were each weighted by 12.5% to sum up to 100%.
| Rank |
State |
Overall Index Score (/100) |
| 1 |
California |
74.99 |
| 2 |
New York |
74.57 |
| 3 |
New Jersey |
65.78 |
| 4 |
Colorado |
63.17 |
| 5 |
Connecticut |
61.8 |
| 6 |
Maryland |
59.79 |
| 7 |
Florida |
58.39 |
| 8 |
Washington |
57.39 |
| 9 |
Nevada |
56.76 |
| 10 |
Oregon |
56.32 |
| 11 |
Delaware |
55.32 |
| 12 |
Louisiana |
54.37 |
| 13 |
Massachusetts |
53.88 |
| 14 |
Texas |
52.77 |
| 15 |
Pennsylvania |
50.6 |
| 16 |
Rhode Island |
48.63 |
| 17 |
Georgia |
48.07 |
| 18 |
Arizona |
47.85 |
| 19 |
Utah |
46.95 |
| 20 |
Hawaii |
46.02 |
| 21 |
Alaska |
45.45 |
| 22 |
Michigan |
44.95 |
| 23 |
Illinois |
44.9 |
| 24 |
Minnesota |
44.52 |
| 25 |
Virginia |
43.74 |
| 26 |
North Carolina |
40.94 |
| 27 |
Montana |
40.58 |
| 28 |
South Carolina |
40.27 |
| 29 |
New Mexico |
38.54 |
| 30 |
Missouri |
37.74 |
| 31 |
Oklahoma |
37.41 |
| 32 |
Tennessee |
37.3 |
| 33 |
Kentucky |
|
