Which States Have the Worst Drivers?
Those wanting to avoid bad drivers should stay clear of Florida, according to research from SmartAsset, a financial tech company that uses data to give advice on big financial decisions. Florida earned the title as the state with the worst drivers for the second year in a row.
SmartAsset looked into four different factors to determine the states with the worst drivers. Factors used to determine these findings included the percentage of drivers with car insurance, DUI rates, the number of people killed in auto accidents and the frequency "parking tickets" is searched on Google.
Florida had a higher death rate from car accidents in 2015, according to SmartAsset's findings. Florida residents also searched "speeding ticket" or "traffic ticket" at the ninth highest rate country-wide. However, the state's DUI rates were low, which worked in its favor. Researchers discovered Florida was among the lower earners in DUI-related arrests as it ranked 45th in the nation. In Florida and other states nationwide, there proved to be no connection between DUI arrests and car accident fatalities.
The study also claimed that Floridian drivers "seem prone to ignoring the rules of the road."
SmartAsset used the four determining factors to find each state's average score. The average score was then used to rank all states accordingly. States with the best averaging score earned 100, whereas states with the worst averaging score earned a 0. The study, however, elaborated on its top ten worst driving states.
SmartAsset's data found that bad driving tends to be common among Southern states.
"Eight of our top 10 states with the worst drivers are in the South," SmartAsset wrote. "These states tend to have higher numbers of people killed per 100 million vehicle miles driven, as well as having lower rates of drivers who are insured."
Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee and Texas helped to round out the top ten. Nevada and California were the two non-Southern states that secured a spot on this year's list. Nevada earned seventh worst because its residents reportedly searched "traffic tickets" on Google more than any other state, whereas Californians have acquired 5.5 DUI arrests for every 1,000 drivers.
SmartAsset found that the best drivers in the country reside in New England states. Four of the six New England states landed towards the bottom of the list. Those states include Maine (47), New Hampshire (48), Vermont (49) and Massachusetts (50). Two New England states missing from the bottom of the list are Rhode Island and Connecticut. However, the pair still acquired spots near the list's end.
There were changes that didn't appear in last year's study. SmartAsset claimed that Florida and Mississippi were repeat offenders this year as the secured spots within the top five for the second consecutive year. However, newcomers to this year's list included California, Louisiana and Georgia.
Washington, D.C., is not considered a state; therefore, D.C. drivers were not included in SmartAsset's study.
Here is the full list of worst driving states in the U.S.:
Florida
Mississippi
Louisiana
Tennessee
Oklahoma
Texas
Nevada
California
Alabama
Georgia
Missouri
Arizona
North Carolina
Kentucky
Michigan
Colorado
New Mexico
South Dakota
North Dakota
South Carolina
Washington
Ohio
Montana
Arkansas
Virginia
Wyoming
Indiana
Alaska
Maryland
Wisconsin
Pennsylvania
New York
Minnesota
Oregon
Illinois
New Jersey
West Virginia
Hawaii
Idaho
Kansas
Delaware
Nebraska
Iowa
Rhode Island
Connecticut
Utah
Maine
New Hampshire
Vermont
Massachusetts
Florida reportedly has the worst drivers according to a new study, pictured May 23, 2014 in Chicago, Illinois, are traffic jams up on the Kennedy Expressway leaving the city for the Memorial Day weekend. Photo: Getty Images
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