HARRISBURG (TNS) — As animal-motor vehicle collisions skyrocketed during the pandemic, Pennsylvania maintained its position as the state with the most collisions, according to State Farm.
The insurance company’s annual analysis determined that of the 2.1 million collisions with animals estimated to have occurred from July 2020 through June 2021, Pennsylvania accounted for 166,404.
For the calculation of industrywide claim estimates, State Farm looks at the number of animal collision claims it received, the company’s market penetration in each state and the number of licensed drivers in each state.
Using that formula, the company found that Pennsylvania far outpaced the next closest state, which was Michigan with 132,387 estimated animal collisions. Other top states are Texas, 131,373 estimated collisions; California, 104,767; and North Carolina, 98,409.
Overall, across the U.S., State Farm estimated that animal collisions were up 7.2 percent from the previous 12 months.
The white-tailed deer is the No. 1 animal involved in collisions with motor vehicles that are reported in claims with insurance companies.
Animals involved in auto crashes include chickens, alligators, bats, cows, pigs, armadillos, bears, donkeys, eagles, horses, coyotes, owls, cats, dogs and more.
But, in the recent 12-month period, deer accounted for more than half of the collisions, an estimated 1.4 million, followed by “unidentified animals,” 189,715; rodents, 110,976; dogs, 92,924; and raccoons, 58,020.
In another measure produced by the analysis – likelihood of hitting an animal with a motor vehicle – Pennsylvania moved down the ranking just a bit.
Drivers in West Virginia face the greatest risk of hitting an animal, with a 1 in 37 chance of being involved in an animal-related accident, followed by drivers in Montana, 1 in 39 chance; South Dakota, 1 in 48; and then Pennsylvania and Michigan, each with 1 in 54 chances.
At the other end of the spectrum is the District of Columbia, where drivers have the low probability of 1 in 569 of hitting an animal with their vehicles.
According to State Farm, the two different types of state rankings differ because for the likelihood of animal collisions ranking, both the number of license drivers and the total number of animal collisions in each state affect the calculation, while for the claims ranking, only the first variable (estimated number of industry claims) matters.
“Animal collisions remind us of the intrinsic risk that comes with driving a motor vehicle that has the potential of traveling very fast. Scanning the road while we drive and avoiding speeding, which has been very prevalent during the pandemic, can avoid and reduce the severity of all kinds of car crashes, including those where pets or wild animals are involved,” said Operations Vice President Kimberly Sterling.
She noted that speeding has been one of the most dangerous phenomena during the pandemic. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration called 2020 the deadliest year (for humans) on highways in more than a decade. Similarly, speed could also be a factor behind the staggering animal collision statistics and their recent increase.
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