This Is The US State With The Worst Drivers, According To Insurance Researchers

It's not uncommon to get behind the wheel and feel like nobody around you has any idea what they are doing. Whether it be failing to use signals or gunning it through an intersection before the light turns from yellow to red, there is no shortage of ways that drivers can make others on the road feel unsafe. It's enough to make one think that the people around them must be the worst drivers in the country. Of course, that can't be possible everywhere. One state has to have the worst drivers in the U.S.

After poring through a year's worth of data, lending marketplace LendingTree found that Massachusetts has the worst drivers in the country. It determined this by examining driving incidents — anything from a speeding ticket to something as drastic as a DUI — in each state between November 5, 2023, and November 4, 2024. LendingTree found that there were 61.1 incidents per 1,000 drivers in Massachusetts. The biggest reason it ranks at the top is car crashes: 44.4 of those 61.1 incidents are traffic accidents, which is nearly five more incidents per 1,000 drivers than the second-most accident-prone state.

Insurance rates tend to spike in states with a lot of accidents, but that doesn't necessarily mean Massachusetts has the highest insurance prices. LendingTree estimates that the cost of insuring a car with any of the major car insurance companies in Massachusetts is the 13th-lowest in the country. So, a collective of bad drivers doesn't necessarily spell high premiums.

East coast states make up the majority of the top five states with the worst drivers, with Rhode Island, Washington D.C., and New Jersey joining Massachusetts at the top of the list. Rhode Island is very close to having as many incidents as Massachusetts, with 60.7 per 1,000 drivers, while D.C. and New Jersey have 54.6 and 45.8 incidents, respectively. 

The primary reason for these states' high ranking is automobile accidents. After all, these are all small, densely populated states. When you are piled on top of each other like that, you are just bound to have more collisions. Washington D.C. and New Jersey also rank among the top five states in terms of DUI rates, with D.C. taking the top spot with 3.6 per 1,000 drivers. Despite these states being high on the list, Rhode Island and New Jersey are the only states that rank among the top ten highest insurance premiums per state, landing at sixth and 10th, respectively.

California rounds out the top five states with the worst drivers, coming in at number three with 55 incidents per 1,000 drivers. Considering that California is the most populous state in the country, with over 39 million people, its high place makes a lot of sense. It's tied with Rhode Island for the most accidents per 1,000 drivers with 39.7, and comes in just behind D.C. with regards to DUIs, at 3.5 incidents. However, California's insurance premiums aren't too crazy, being the 30th most expensive on average, according to LendingTree. Of course, that doesn't mean car insurance in California is cheap, though.