Accident Experience of Older AAA Drivers in Michigan

Older drivers typically are involved in certain types of multi-vehicle accidents. This paper studies one year of accident data from the AAA Michigan claim files involving drivers aged 55-64, 65-70, and 70+ to determine whether there is a pattern of increasing involvement in these accident modes. Of significance is that only those collisions were studied that could be cross-referenced with a police report to verify their accuracy as well as determine blame. The data indicate that there is a pattern of increasing frequency of involvement in four of seven accident types selected. More importantly, there is a perceptible increase in the rate at which drivers over the age of 71 are considered to be at fault in each of the accident types considered regardless of gender.