Nose to tail crunches win hands down as the most common accident across Australia, according to AAMI’s latest Crash Index.
Analysis of almost 250,000 accident insurance claims between October 2012 and September 2013, show the top five types of accidents nationally:
Top five accidents, national
- Nose to tail 27.8%
- Parked car dings 21%
- Failed to give way 20.5%
- Collision with a stationary object 14.7%
- Collision while reversing 11%
Drivers in ACT are finding themselves in nose-to-tail collisions more often then any other type of crash, with almost three in 10 accidents involving one car smashing into the back of another. Meanwhile bollards and parked cars in Tasmania live in fear drivers buck the national trend with parked car dings and collision with a stationary object accound for over 50% while nose to tail accidents account for just 14.1%. Drivers in Victoria and NSW are the most stubborn with failure to give way the number two reason for prangs. NSW drivers win on reversing skills with the lowest number of collisions while reversing at just 9.9%
Over the years there has been little change in the type of accidents on Australian roads.
AMMI’s Crash Index reports show that the incidence of nose-to-tail collisions has remained stable for the past decade, hovering between 27% and 29%. Parked car dings, however, continue on an upward trend having risen from 15% in 2004 to 21.4% in the latest Crash Index.
“It’s surprising that ACT is above the national average when it comes to nose-to-tail collisions given it doesn’t have as much high density traffic and congestion as the major East coast cities. Australia’s capital, however, is famous for its roundabouts and the high proportion of this type of intersection, combined with common driver errors such as failing to indicate when exiting roundabouts and showing a general lack of patience, could be the reason why there are so many,” said AAMI spokesperson, Reuben Aitchison.
“By their own admission, nearly three-quarters of drivers who’ve had a prang say it was avoidable, so if we want to see a reduction in accidents on our roads, drivers becoming more patient would be a great start,” Aitchison said.
