Drunk Driving Statistics

• 12,429 people were killed by drunk drivers in 2023
• Between 2022 and 2023, drunk driving fatalities in the U.S. decreased by 8 percent. However, drunk driver fatalities are still higher than they were before the pandemic.
• Alcohol impairment accounted for approximately one-third of road deaths in 2023.
• Adults aged 21 to 24 (in particular men) were the most likely to experience a fatal crash driving while drunk compared to any other age group.

How Many People Die From Alcohol-Related Crashes?

In 2023, the most recent year that the NHTSA published national data, 12,429 people died in drunk driving crashes. One person was killed every 42 minutes due to drunk driving.¹

Alcohol-impaired driving is when a driver has a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08—the legal limit in most U.S. states—or above. In Utah, the legal limit is a BAC of 0.05.

By Year

In 2023, the number of people killed in DUIs annually decreased by over 1,000, or about 8 percent. However, DUI deaths increased during the pandemic: between 2019 and 2022, annual deaths increased by about 3,000—or about 33 percent. Still, numbers have improved significantly from 40 years ago. In 1985, 18,125 people were killed in alcohol-impaired crashes, and 41 percent of all crashes involved an alcohol-impaired driver.²

Between 2010 and 2019, the number of people killed in DUIs each year stayed right around 10,000, with an average of 10,268 fatalities each year.

By State

South Carolina and Rhode Island have the highest percentage of alcohol-related road fatalities, with 43 percent of all fatal crashes involving a driver with a BAC of 0.08 or higher.³ On the other end of the spectrum is Utah—the state with the strictest BAC limit in the country—where only 22 percent of traffic fatalities were alcohol-related. The average across all states is 32 percent, accounting for about a third of all motor vehicle deaths.

Note that the NHTSA records data based on the driver involved with the highest BAC, so if there are two drivers in the crash, one with a BAC of 0.00 (sober) and one with a BAC of 0.09 (drunk), the latter will be recorded and the crash will be considered alcohol-impaired.

By Age

While teen drivers get a bad reputation for underage drinking and driving, in 2022 adults in their early 20s (aged 21-24) experienced the highest rate of death from drunk driving. A total of 43 percent of fatal crashes among this age group involved drunk driving. This marks a change from 2020 when adults aged 25-34 were the highest-risk demographic for drunk driving.⁴

Senior drivers (aged 75 and older) had the lowest drunk driving rates by age group in 2022. Only 13 percent of all traffic fatalities in that age group involved alcohol impairment. Generally, the likelihood of drunk driving peaks at age 34 and steadily declines through late adulthood.

According to the NHTSA, 25 percent of children aged 14 or younger killed in road crashes in 2022 were killed by drunk driving.

By Passenger/Person Type

Drunk driving doesn’t just put the driver at risk, but everyone around them too. According to the Insurance Information Institute, in 2022, one-third of all passenger fatalities involved drunk driving. 35 percent of motorcyclist fatalities, 19 percent of pedestrian fatalities, and 16 percent of cyclist fatalities involved drunk driving.

In 2023, gun violence killed 3.75 more people across the U.S. than drunk driving. Nationally, 46,728 people died from gun violence, compared to 12,429 who were killed by drunk driving.⁴

This hasn’t always been the case. In 2020, for example, drunk driving deaths outnumbered deaths from gun violence, killing 21,928 more people in the U.S. than guns, according to data from the Violence Policy Center.⁵

See your state’s comparison below:

When it comes to drunk driving, you may hear a lot of acronyms thrown around: DUI, DWI, OWI, SR-22 and more. But what’s the difference between DUIs and DWIs?

• DUIs: DUI stands for “driving under the influence” with a vehicle either in motion or, in some states, under a person’s control — meaning you can get a DUI for sitting in a parked car.⁶
• DWIs: DWI, which stands for “driving while intoxicated,” is a more serious charge than DUI, as it refers exclusively to drinking and driving. Convictions are often based on BAC levels.

Are DUIs and DWIs Felonies?

Both DUIs and DWIs can be misdemeanors or felonies, depending on whether it was a first offense and the results of the incident, such as any deaths or serious injuries. While misdemeanors typically result in a maximum sentence of one year in jail and a $1,000 fine, felonies could mean years in prison, thousands in fines, license suspension and a loss of voting rights in the most extreme cases.

Whether you’re driving under the influence of just alcohol or mixing alcohol with drugs, your driving will be affected negatively. Here’s how.

Alcohol Alone

• Impaired judgment: Alcohol makes it difficult to judge the speed and movement of other vehicles and the distance between them, making it easy to drift into other lanes or even run off the road.
• Blurred vision: You may have double vision, which is more than a little distracting. Even with a BAC as low as .02 g/dl, your eyesight could be affected.
• Inability to distinguish colors: Drunk drivers may find it difficult to distinguish colors in signals, roadway markings and traffic signs.
• Slowed reaction times: Your reflexes aren’t as quick when you’re intoxicated, as alcohol is a depressant. That makes driving defensively difficult, if not impossible.

Alcohol and Drugs

• Alcohol and marijuana: Combining alcohol and marijuana while driving can further slow your judgment, reaction times and coordination, exacerbating the effects of alcohol alone.
• Alcohol and medications: Whether they’re prescription or over-the-counter (OTC), some medications cause dizziness and drowsy driving. You should always ask your doctor or pharmacist before driving on medication, even if you’re not under the influence of alcohol too.

Speeding

Speeding is also related to drunk driving, according to data from the National Safety Council.⁷ One-third of speeding drivers who died in traffic crashes in 2020 were drunk. Learn more about teen speeding.

People with Prior Convictions

Not surprisingly, people with previous convictions for driving while impaired were more likely to die in fatal crashes compared to those with no prior conviction — four times more likely, to be specific.

Alcohol Concentration

While a 0.08 BAC is the legal threshold for drunk driving, research shows that the likelihood of a crash increases at a 0.05 BAC. Drivers who have a BAC higher than 0.15 are three times more likely to be killed in a drunk driving incident.⁸

Drunk driving poses other serious risks in addition to injury, property damage, and death.

Legal

Of course, it’s illegal to drive drunk in every state and doing so can result in either a misdemeanor or felony charge. A drunk-driving conviction could result in:

• Driver’s license revocation
• Ignition interlock requirement
• Fines
• Jail time
• Legal fees
• SR-22 requirement

• Choose a designated driver: Before you go out, designate one person in your friend group to be your sober driver.
• Don’t let others drink and drive: If you see a drunk person trying to drive, take their keys away from them. Help them arrange a ride home if you can.
• Use other modes of transportation: Rather than driving yourself, use other modes of transportation such as public transit, rideshares or taxis.
• Wear your seatbelt: Seatbelts can greatly reduce your risk of injuries or death, no matter who’s behind the wheel.

If you need help with alcohol consumption or alcohol-related issues, contact the American Addiction Centers at (888) 988-0482 for free, confidential guidance.

Drunk driving can have devastating, lifelong consequences for you and those around you. Sadly, the number of drivers killed thanks to drunk driving has risen since 2019, although it did decrease by about 0.5 percent between 2021 and 2022.

Staying off the road when intoxicated is one of the simplest things you can do to keep yourself and others safe. The cost of a taxi or rideshare is a fraction of the potential cost and consequences—financial and physical—of a crash or DUI.

We used third-party sources to create this report, including:

• Insurance Information Institute
• NHTSA
• National Safety Council
• Nolo
• Violence Policy Center