Car Brands With the Most Accidents: Which Drivers Crash the Most?

Ram, Subaru and Tesla are among the car brands with the most accidents on average — with Tesla also topping the list of auto manufacturers with the highest rate of fatal car accidents. Although overall collision rates don’t necessarily reflect a car’s build quality, you should consider a vehicle’s size and crash safety track record before buying, since these factors may affect your car insurance rates.

The car brands with the most accidents generally aren’t intrinsically flawed, but they may produce multiple high-performance models or attract younger, higher-risk drivers.

Continue reading to find out more about which car brands have the most accidents and what details you should look out for when analyzing car accident statistics and determining whether a vehicle is likely to be safe.

Car Brands With the Highest Accident Rates

As of 2026, the following car manufacturers have the top five highest rates of car accidents per owner of their vehicles:^[1]

Ram

Ram currently ranks as the car brand with the most collisions, with a rate of nearly 24 accidents for every 1,000 Ram owners. In addition, Ram drivers rank second for DUIs, speeding citations and overall driving violation incidents. One possible explanation for this is that many Ram truck drivers may be young men who tend to engage in higher-risk driving behaviors than other demographics.^[1]

Subaru

With 23.2 accidents per 1,000 drivers, Subaru ranks No. 2 on the list of automakers with the most accidents. Subaru also ranks in the top five for overall negative driving incidents. That said, the manufacturer ranks toward the middle of the pack for DUIs and speeding tickets, suggesting Subaru drivers tend to practice fairly safe driving habits outside of their high exposure to car crashes.^[1]

Tesla

Tesla owners get into an average of 23.1 car accidents per 1,000 drivers, placing them slightly lower than Subaru owners. The electric vehicle manufacturer also ranks third for overall driving incident rates and ties for second when it comes to speeding violations. Since Tesla makes multiple high-performance EVs, some drivers may be tempted to make risky decisions behind the wheel to test their car’s capabilities.^[1]

BMW

BMW has a car accident rate of 22.9 collisions for every 1,000 drivers, making it rank fourth for vehicle collision exposure. However, BMW ranks No. 1 on the list of car brands with the worst drivers overall, thanks in large part to the fact that it ranks first for DUI prevalence — with a rate more than twice as high as second-ranked Ram. It’s possible that BMW’s high-speed sports cars attract risky drivers.^[1]

Lexus and Volkswagen

Lexus and Volkswagen are tied for fifth on the list of what car brands have the most accidents, with a rate of 20.8 crashes per 1,000 drivers. Volkswagen is also ranked No. 4 on the list of car brands whose drivers have the most on-the-road incidents overall. Conversely, Lexus ties for the lowest rate of speeding tickets and the second-lowest rate of DUI arrests.^[1]

Accident Rate vs. Total Accidents: What’s the Difference?

“Total accidents” refers to the raw number of collisions that occur within a given time frame, while an accident rate refers to the proportion of accidents compared to the number of drivers or the total distance driven. For example, the car brands with the highest number of total accidents — Ford, Chevrolet and Toyota — are among the most popular makes in the United States.^[2]

However, none of these three rank toward the top for crash rates, meaning their high total accident numbers are simply due to the large number of cars they have on the road.

Which Car Brands Have the Most Fatal Crashes?

Tesla has the highest average rate of car crashes resulting in fatalities, with 5.6 deadly collisions per 1 billion vehicle miles traveled — double the average for all automakers. In the next table, you’ll see the average mortality rates for the five car brands with the most fatal car accidents:^[3]

That said, individual vehicle models produced by different carmakers may have higher death rates. For example, the Hyundai Venue has a fatal accident rate nearly five times higher than the average vehicle. Below, you can see the traffic fatality rates for the five deadliest car models from 2018 to 2022:^[3]

Vehicle Make and Model	Fatal Accident Rate per Billion Vehicle Miles
Hyundai Venue	13.9
Chevrolet Corvette	13.6
Mitsubishi Mirage	13.6
Porsche 911	13.2
Honda CR-V Hybrid	13.2

Why Do Some Car Brands Have More Accidents?

When certain car brands have more accidents than others, it generally has less to do with the vehicles themselves than it does with the people driving them. Even if a car is well designed and has good crash safety ratings, it may get into several accidents if its drivers make unwise decisions — such as speeding, driving while intoxicated and ignoring other traffic laws — or if they live in areas with unsafe driving conditions, like inclement weather or poor roads.^[3]

Nevertheless, it may be possible for a certain make or model to have a higher rate of car accidents because of flaws in the design of the vehicle itself. For example, if a given vehicle model has a high rate of mechanical breakdowns, it may be more likely to malfunction on the road, potentially raising the risk that the driver will be involved in a collision.

Do Cars With More Accidents Cost More To Insure?

Insurers consider your vehicle’s safety record when setting your car insurance premiums, but factors like common defects and how likely your car is to cause injury or death in an accident may matter more than the car’s overall collision rate, since this may be influenced by driver behaviors more so than manufacturing flaws. Ultimately, your personal driving record will shape your premiums rather than the records of other people who drive the same type of car.^[4]

What Factors Impact Vehicle Safety?

Some of the main factors impacting how safe a vehicle is include the following:^[5]

• Size: The smaller and lighter a vehicle is, the less protection it provides for the driver and their passengers in the event of a crash. For this reason, larger vehicles — such as minivans — typically result in the fewest driver fatalities per accident.
• Frame design: It’s important for the steel or aluminum frame of a car to absorb the force of a collision or redirect that energy away from the people in the vehicle. To accomplish this, the safest vehicles may have a crumple zone that’s designed to collapse under a significant amount of pressure and a rigid structure that surrounds and protects the passenger compartment.
• Tire pressure: Maintaining ample tire pressure is crucial to prevent unexpected tire blowouts that could lead to accidents. Fortunately, all cars manufactured since 2007 have come with tire pressure monitoring systems that notify the driver about irregular tire pressure.
• Air bags: Front air bags lower the rate of driver deaths in frontal collisions by 29%. Some vehicles also incorporate additional air bags, such as side air bags to protect the driver in a driver-side crash and rear air bags to protect passengers in the back seat.
• Electronic stability control: With electronic stability control, your car will individually apply the brakes to each tire automatically — as needed — to reduce skidding, enabling you to control the vehicle more precisely and drive safely more easily.
• Crash avoidance technology: Most modern vehicles come with numerous features designed to reduce the odds that you’ll be involved in a car crash, including adaptive cruise control, rearview cameras and blind spot monitors.

Are Older Cars Prone to More Accidents?

Older vehicles are not necessarily involved in more accidents than newer vehicles. Even so, older cars may be more likely to experience certain mechanical defects — such as engine, brake or steering system failures — that could cause a driver to lose control of the vehicle and crash into another car, a person or a fixed object, like a tree or light pole.

When older cars are involved in accidents, they tend to result in casualties more often because they lack modern safety features. A 2013 study estimated that drivers of cars that are at least 18 years old are 71% more likely to die in the event of a fatal crash than drivers of cars that are no more than 3 years old.^[6] Meanwhile, according to a 2023 study, the crash fatality risk may be anywhere from four to 17 times higher if you drive a historic, vintage or classic car.^[7]

Are Luxury Cars Prone to More Accidents?

Luxury cars are involved in slightly more deadly speeding-related accidents than nonluxury vehicles, but they also have a relatively low crash fatality rate.^[8][9] Keep in mind that some luxury models may not be independently crash-tested due to their high prices and low demand, so you may want to think twice before becoming an early adopter of a luxury vehicle if it hasn’t yet been tested by a reliable organization.^[10]

Are Larger Cars Generally Safer?

Larger vehicles are generally safer than smaller vehicles because they’re heavier, meaning they experience less force in the event of a collision. Additionally, big vehicles have more space between the front of the car and the passenger compartment, which means more of the energy from a head-on collision is absorbed as the front of the vehicle crumples — minimizing the amount of force that reaches the people in the car.^[11]

Car Brands With the Most Accidents at a Glance

1. Ram has the highest rate of car accidents per 1,000 people driving its vehicles, followed by Subaru, Tesla and BMW.
2. Tesla drivers get into the most fatal car accidents, while BMW drivers have the highest rate of DUIs and are considered the worst drivers overall.
3. Ford, Chevrolet and Toyota have the most car accidents overall, but this can be attributed to the fact that they sell more vehicles than most other auto manufacturers.
4. Manufacturing defects could potentially explain why some car brands crash more than others, but in most cases, crash rates have more to do with driver behaviors and driving environments.
5. You may have to pay more for car insurance if you drive a model with a poor crash safety record.
6. Some of the factors that influence how safe a vehicle is include its safety features, build and size, with large cars generally being safer for their drivers and passengers than small cars.
7. Older cars often fare worse than newer cars in accidents, while luxury cars often fare better than nonluxury cars.

How To Compare Car Insurance Before Choosing Your Next Vehicle

No matter what brand of car you choose to buy, you need to make sure you have adequate car insurance coverage in case of a car accident. Each insurance company has its own methods for evaluating risk and assigning premiums, so it’s best to compare quotes from around three to five carriers before settling on a policy. However, contacting multiple insurers one at a time to request quotes can be time-consuming.

Instead, share all the information needed to obtain a quote once through SmartFinancial. After you fill out our brief questionnaire, we’ll connect you with an insurance agent who can help you shop for personalized auto insurance policies that match your coverage needs and budget. Begin the process of comparing car insurance quotes for free today!