Who Causes More Road Accidents? Global Data Points to Men

Global crash numbers challenge old stereotypes about women drivers.

For years people have joked that women are the worst drivers. However, the data tells a very different story. According to recent global data, it’s men who are behind the most road accidents and fatalities. The stats of road accidents are surprisingly consistent across the world.

Take the UK, for example. Provisional 2024 figures reveal that men are involved in 76% of road deaths. Also, 61% of all road casualties were male, according to the Department for Transport. The latest report by the EU shows a similar picture, with men causing nearly three-quarters of all traffic deaths.

In Australia, data up to mid-2025 entails that men are about three times more likely to be killed on the road than women. Ireland’s 2024 data shows that three out of every four road deaths were male. The United States of America tells the same story. In 2023, 72.5% of road fatalities were men, with 29,584 male deaths compared to 11,229 female.

So why is this happening? This is not about driving skills. It’s all about risky behavior. Men are far more likely to speed, drink and drive, or skip wearing a seatbelt. In the United States only, 29% of traffic deaths were due to speeding. On the other hand, alcohol impairment played a role in 30%, with men overrepresented in both categories. The UK’s Fatal 4 list of speeding, impairment, distraction, and not buckling up also supports these numbers.

Yes, studies show that women are sometimes more likely to have slightly higher injury risks in crashes. It is because safety tests are historically focused on male crash dummies. However, it doesn’t mean women are bad drivers. The overall data shows that men tend to take more risky chances on the road, and those risks often turn deadly.