Wheelchair Users Are More Likely To Die In Car Accidents

A recent analysis of United States crash data has revealed that individuals who use wheelchairs are more likely to die in a car accident than other pedestrians by as much as 36 percent, according to a Fox News report. Furthermore, the risk of death for male wheelchair users was five times higher when compared their female counterparts. Unfortunately, the data – which was used from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) failed to reveal the reasons why individuals in wheelchairs are more vulnerable than other pedestrians.

If someone you know has been tragically injured or killed as a result of a car accident due to the negligence or recklessness of another, contact an aggressive and compassionate car accident lawyer in Nassau County.

What the Car Accident Study Revealed

BMJ Open, an online-only open access medical journal dedicated to all disciplines and therapeutic areas of medicine, published the study compiling data from both the NHTSA as well as news stories reporting fatalities due to car accidents. And while it is unclear as to why wheelchair users seem to be at a greater risk of death when involved in a car accident, the findings came to this conclusion by looking at six years of data (from 2006 through 2012) and demonstrated the following:

• Almost half of all car accidents occurred at intersections;
• About 39 percent of the car accidents occurred at intersections with no stop lights;
• Of those car accidents that occurred at an intersection, almost half involved a wheelchair user in the crosswalk while in18 percent of case no crosswalk was even available;
• Approximately 21 percent of car accidents occurred because the driver failed to yield the right-of-way;
• More than three-quarters of the car accidents had drivers that failed to implement any crash avoidance techniques;
• In about 15 percent of the car accidents the wheelchairs were not readily visible to drivers;
• Five times as many men using wheelchairs were tragically killed compared to women using similar assistive devices;
• Deaths among male wheelchair users were the highest for those between the ages of 50 and 64 years; and
• During the time period of the study (2006-2012) approximately 528 pedestrians using wheelchairs were killed in a car accident that occurred on American soil.

It is unknown what type of wheelchairs were involved in these car accidents from the BMJ Open study and the number of fatalities involving these assistive devices may be underreported.

Nassau County Car Accident Lawyer

If you or a loved one has been seriously injured in a car accident due to the negligence of another – or someone you know has been tragically killed in the same type of car accident – contact compassionate and knowledgeable Nassau County car accident lawyer today for an initial consultation. Don’t delay, make your appointment today by contacting 516-441-0282.