FACTS

Common accidents caused by bad driving conditions in snow include:

1. Reduced traction and longer stopping distances can lead to rear-end collisions.
2. Loss of traction on icy roads can cause vehicles to skid or slide out of control.
3. Slippery conditions cause drivers to lose control of vehicles and lead them to veer off the road.
4. In snowstorms and whiteout conditions, multiple vehicles are involved in chain-reaction collisions.
5. Drivers may have difficulty stopping at intersections due to icy roads with cross traffic or pedestrians.
6. Large commercial vehicles jackknife on icy roads when a trailer swings out of alignment with the cab.
7. Collisions with snowplows and winter maintenance vehicles can occur when drivers don’t give these vehicles enough space or fail to notice them due to poor visibility.
8. Vehicles may roll over on slippery roads, particularly on sharp turns or uneven surfaces.

STATS

• Slushy or snowy pavement causes a 30% to 40% speed reduction on major roads. (The Weather Channel)
• Around 70% of the population in the United States lives in places that have snowy and icy conditions during the winter. (FHWA)
• About 17% of vehicle crashes occur in snowy conditions. (NHTSA). 70% of roads in the United States are in snowy areas, which increases the threat of an accident significantly. (FHWA).
• In Canada, nearly 30% of reported collisions in 2017 occurred on wet, snowy, or icy roads, with December witnessing a significant increase in collision-related claims by 49% according to Canadian insurance providers. On a broader scale, statistics indicate that annually, around 1,836 deaths and approximately 136,309 injuries are attributed to icy and snowy road conditions.
• In Canada, over 30% of collisions are attributed to environmental conditions, and almost 30% of car accidents happen on snowy or icy roads.
• Canadian winter weather conditions play a huge factor in the number of accidents each year. Over 1,400 accidents cited weather conditions among factors. In addition, in almost 3,500 accidents, loose snow or slush was present. Sleet or hail was falling during 175 accidents, drifting snow during 500 accidents, light snow during 900 accidents, and heavy snow during 1,500 accidents.