Perhaps this comes as no surprise, but car accidents are the leading cause of accidental death in the United States. According to the latest information from the United States Vital Statistics Report, this is true across all age groups.

Accidental deaths, do not mean no-fault deaths. Indeed, many ‘accidental deaths’ would actually be viewed as the liability of another by a San Antonio wrongful death lawyer and ultimately a jury.

The statistics can be shocking. Motor vehicle accidents cause 59.5% of all deaths of children between the ages of 5 and 14–an age group that obviously doesn’t include a single driver. For teen drivers and younger drivers, the statistics are more alarming. Fully three-quarters of all deaths in the age group of 15-24 are the result of auto wrecks. The numbers stabilize in the 40% range throughout middle age and taper off as elderly drivers either leave the roads or lose some of their mobility.

The next major category also affects the elderly. Slip and fall accidents, rather surprisingly, cause 13.6% of all accidental deaths nationwide. That number is heavily weighted toward the elderly. For example, 41% of all accidental deaths of people over age 85 are the result of falls.

Medical malpractice deaths are relatively low. Complications from medical care or surgery account for only about 3% of all accidental deaths–and many of those are probably not the result of medical malpractice.

Sad but interesting statistics on tragic accidents involving death.