Arkansas car accident statistics (2020-2024)

Car accident deaths in Arkansas by year

Annual car accident deaths rose from 547 in 2020 to 574 in 2021, then fell to 530 in 2022 and 498 in 2023. The count rose to 506 in 2024. The highest count was 574 in 2021, and the lowest was 498 in 2023. The 2024 count was 41 deaths lower than the 2020 count.^{[1][2][3][4][5]}

Arkansas accounted for 1.5% of the national total of 176,219 car accident deaths from 2020 through 2024. Its annual share of the U.S. total was 1.6% in 2020, 1.5% in 2021, 1.4% in 2022, 1.4% in 2023 and 1.5% in 2024. These national shares refer to deaths in qualifying passenger-vehicle-involved crashes.^{[1][2][3][4][5]}

2024 figures come from the FARS Annual Report File and can be revised when NHTSA publishes the final file.

Who died in Arkansas car accidents

People in cars, SUVs, pickups or vans accounted for 2,058 deaths, or 77.5% of Arkansas car accident deaths from 2020 through 2024. This was the largest person category. People in other vehicles accounted for 260 deaths, or 9.8%, the smallest category. Nonoccupants (FARS person-type grouping) accounted for 337 deaths, or 12.7%.^{[1][2][3][4][5][7]}

Each category counts deaths in fatal crashes involving a passenger vehicle. The Nonoccupants (FARS person-type grouping) label follows the FARS classification rather than a literal test of whether someone was outside a vehicle; it can include occupants of parked vehicles.^{[1][2][3][4][5][7]}

Collision types and setting

By first harmful event, Head-on accounted for 526 deaths; Angle (side impact), 433; Rear-end, 189; Sideswipe, 98; Other, 5; and Unknown, 3. Not a collision with a motor vehicle in transport accounted for 1,401 deaths (52.8%). That row includes first events such as rollovers or impacts with fixed objects or parked vehicles. A vehicle in transport can be stopped in traffic.^{[1][2][3][4][5][7]}

Car accident deaths numbered 1,389 during daytime (6 a.m. to 5:59 p.m.) and 1,262 during nighttime (6 p.m. to 5:59 a.m.); time was unknown for 4. Urban locations accounted for 1,044 deaths and rural locations for 1,610; land use was unknown for 1.^{[1][2][3][4][5][7]}

Counties with the most car accident deaths

Pulaski County had the most car accident deaths, with 367, followed by Benton County with 130 and Washington County with 123. Garland County recorded 90 deaths; Craighead County, 89; Faulkner County, 81; White County, 79; Sebastian County, 75; and Saline County, 74. Crittenden County and Jefferson County each recorded 70 deaths. Lonoke County had 59, Hot Spring County had 47, and Independence County and Mississippi County each had 45.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6]}

Death counts and population rates describe different measures. Among the listed counties, Crittenden County had the highest average annual deaths per 100,000 residents at 29.6, while Benton County had the lowest at 8.6. Pulaski County's rate was 18.3. These rate rankings apply only to the listed counties.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6]}

Up to 15 counties with the most deaths in the period, largest first. Rates for counties with few deaths change sharply with each death.

How Arkansas compares with the national rate

The Arkansas car accident death rate was 17.4, compared with the national rate of 10.5. Both figures measure average annual deaths per 100,000 residents for 2020 through 2024. Arkansas's rate was higher than the national rate. The corresponding death counts were 2,655 for Arkansas and 176,219 for the United States.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6]}

Rates use the sum of annual Census Bureau population estimates for the period, rather than a single year's population. Arkansas's July 1, 2024 estimate of 3,096,080 residents is shown separately and is not the denominator. The rates do not adjust for miles driven or visitors. If searching for a car accident lawyer, keep the grouping in mind: these deaths are assigned by crash location, not residency.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6]}

About these figures

FARS is NHTSA's census of fatal motor vehicle traffic crashes. Inclusion requires a motor vehicle traveling on a trafficway customarily open to the public and an occupant or nonoccupant dying within 30 days. Nonfatal crashes and injuries are excluded. State and county counts follow crash location, not the deceased person's residence.^[8][6][7]

Data for 2020 through 2023 use FARS Final Files; 2024 uses the Annual Report File, subject to revision. Rates divide period deaths by summed annual Census Bureau population estimates, Vintage 2025, then multiply by 100,000 for average annual deaths per 100,000 residents. They do not adjust for miles driven or visitors. The separate July 1, 2024 population estimate is not the rate denominator.^[8][6][7]

See also

• FARS Annual Report File and Final File
• Car accident statistics for Pulaski County, Arkansas (2020-2024)