Who Needs Drivers Ed

I came across an article (that’s probably exaggerating the situation – let’s just say it was a glomeration of information) – from an organization called autoinsurance.org. This organization took it upon itself to come up with its ranking of best and worst drivers by state. Apparently, there is a tie-in there with various insurance companies, and what they charge in different states for auto insurance, and what the impact of something like, for instance, a DUI would have on an otherwise insurance quote. Putting those fine issues aside, I was going to skip this article until a most interesting item caught my eyes – and that was that New Jersey has among the best drivers in the country. Yes, our state, New Jersey. So, presented here for a degree of interest as well as amusement, is a listing of the states having the 10 best drivers, as well as the 10 worst drivers in the US. Now, don’t blame me, as I said, this is per autoinsurance.org. After these side-by-side lists, I will add in a couple of comments as per the source material.

As you can see from the above, according to this survey, New Jersey has the 5th best drivers in the country. We are told that 83% of us have clean driving records (frankly that takes me by surprise, based on the few people I know); and that the most common driving violation (in New Jersey) is at fault accidents. Of minor interest and little relevance, our neighbor New York is ranked as having the 2nd best drivers in the country. As far as the best, that goes to Michigan, where the survey indicates that 86% of Michigan drivers have clean driving records, and the most common violation there is speeding. Of true interest here, because it shattered my image and understanding, the survey indicated that Michigan has the highest auto insurance rates (attributed likely to its high number of uninsured drivers). Now, I have to tell you, and I’m sure that 90%+ of my readers will agree, we were all under the belief and understanding that New Jersey had the highest auto insurance rates. It’s nice to know that there is at least one expense where we’re not the highest.

As to the worst drivers, as indicated above, Ohio snared that dubious honor. According to that survey, Ohio drivers received traffic citations 25% more frequently than the average driver; topping the charts for the most traffic citations and the most speeding tickets per capita. Further, and I’m not sure how relevant this is to being a good or bad driver, but according to this survey, Ohio drivers are the 6th highest rudest drivers in the country. So much for the genteelness of Midwesterners. You will also note from the chart above that not one of the states with the 10 worst drivers is in the Northeast. And, there seems to be a minor correlation between the wide open spaces and being bad drivers.

If you have any questions contact Kal Barson at kal@barsongroup.com.