Wyoming Leads The Nation In Teen Driving Fatalities

The biggest threat to teen lives isn’t drugs or violence — it’s car crashes.

Young drivers are nearly four times more likely to be involved in fatal traffic crashes than older drivers. In 2022, there were more than 2,500 fatalities involving teen drivers in the U.S. That’s a sobering average of 11.57 fatalities for every 100,000 American teenagers.

According to the report, "States with the Worst Teen Drivers," Wyoming has the second-worst teen drivers.

Consumer Affairs put the study together looking at government data from the National Highway Traffic Administration, the U.S. Census Bureau, the Governors Highway Safety Association, Legislation, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and more.

Wyoming has the highest total fatality rate involving teen drivers at nearly 34 fatalities per 100K teens.

That’s nearly triple the national average. Wyoming also ranks as the worst in the country for fatalities involving teens speeding, with more than 23 fatalities per 100,000 teens, which is more than five times the national average rate.

Plot Twist: Wyoming is also one of more than a dozen states with zero fatalities involving teens driving under the influence in 2022, despite ranking third worst in the country for drunken driving overall.

"While Wyomingites have to wait until age 15 to get their learner’s permit and age 16 to earn an intermediate license (which allows unsupervised driving), the Cowboy State mandates a learning period of just 10 days. This means that a teen driver may have only had a few weeks of supervised driving before hitting the road independently. (For comparison, the vast majority of U.S. states require at least six to 12 months in the “learner” stage to gain skills, experience and confidence behind the wheel)" notes Consumer Affairs.

Montana has the worst teen drivers overall in the U.S. It has the highest rates of fatalities involving teens driving under the influence and fatalities involving teens engaging in bad driving behaviors.

The study posits two factors that could be contributors. It says Montana has some of the most lenient laws around distracted driving. There are no state laws banning cellphone use while driving, even for new drivers. In fact, at the time of publication, Montana is the only state in the nation that hasn’t yet banned texting while driving. The state also ranks deadliest for teens driving under the influence.

To see the full report click here.