US Distracted Driving Fatalities Are Up 15%: These Are the Deadliest States

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), distracted driving fatalities fell by 5%, from 3,214 deaths in 2021 to 3,047 in 2022. However, despite this recent decrease, there has been a significant 15% increase in these fatalities from 2018 to 2022.

MoneyGeek analyzed the most recent data from the NHTSA's Fatality Analysis Reporting System and state highway travel data from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics to see which states have the highest rates of distracted driving fatalities and find the places in the U.S. where distracted driving takes the biggest toll.

• Distracted driving fatalities surpassed 3,000 in the last two years, reaching 3,214 in 2021 and 3,047 in 2022 after staying below 3,000 from 2018 to 2020.

• New Mexico had the highest rate of distracted driving fatalities for the fifth year in a row. Its distracted driving fatality rate is more than double that of Louisiana, the state with the second-highest rate.

• In 2022, Idaho, Texas and Montana move into the worst 10 states for distracted driving, with fatality rates above 1.4 per one billion miles driven.

• South Dakota and Wyoming had the largest increases in distracted driving deaths from 2021 and 2022, with fatalities climbing by 75% and 67%, respectively.

To find the states with the most dangerous distracted drivers, MoneyGeek reviewed the most recent two years of distracted driving fatality and vehicle mile data and calculated a distracted driving fatality rate for every state.

The map below shows the distracted driving rate in each state. We also ranked the states with the highest distracted driving fatality rates below and included information about each state’s overall rate. MoneyGeek's analysis found that, for the fifth year in a row, New Mexico had the dubious distinction of being the state with the highest rate of distracted driving fatalities relative to the miles traveled by car.

Among the states with the highest distracted driving fatality rates, MoneyGeek also specified whether or not each state had enacted a ban on using handheld devices or texting while driving — a "Yes" in this column indicates a total ban on all use, while "No" indicates no restrictions.

The reality is that many Americans use their phones and engage in distracted driving behaviors regularly.

While most distracted driving doesn’t end in deaths, the consequences can still be severe. For instance, pedestrians hit by those driving just 25 mph have a 1 in 3 chance of being seriously injured, according to MoneyGeek's pedestrian crash analysis.

Even if no one is injured, your car insurance rates will increase after an at-fault accident by 24%, on average. Having an accident on your record makes finding affordable full coverage car insurance much more difficult. Distracted driving without an accident may also incur significant driving penalties or fines depending on where you live. In short, the danger of distracted driving isn't limited to what someone can do to someone else.

MoneyGeek calculated the distracted driving fatality rate for each state by accessing distracted driving fatality information provided by NHTSA and combining that with state highway usage provided by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. We looked at trends across years and compared state fatality rates against the national average. Currently, 2022 is the most recently available data from both of these sources. We also obtained state-level data from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics on bans on handheld devices and texting while driving.

The data points presented are defined as follows:

• Rank: Rank in the overall analysis, with a lower rank indicating a higher overall distracted driving fatality rate.
• Distracted Driving Fatality Rate (per Billion Miles): Distracted Driving Deaths 2021–2022 divided by 2021–2022 Miles Driven, multiplied by 1,000.
• Distracted Driving Deaths 2021–2022: The number of distracted driving-related fatalities in the indicated state from 2021–2022.
• Miles Driven (Millions) 2021–2022: The number of miles in millions driven in the indicated state from 2021–2022.