Risk Factors for Impaired Driving

Key points

  • Some groups are more at risk for driving impaired than other groups.
  • Among drivers involved in fatal crashes in 2022, the percentage of drivers who were impaired by alcohol was highest among drivers 21–24 years old and 25–34 years old.

People at increased risk

Some groups are more at risk for impaired driving and related crashes and deaths.

Teen drivers and passengers

  • Drinking any amount of alcohol before driving increases crash risk among teen drivers.12 Teen drivers have a much higher risk for being involved in a crash than older drivers at the same blood alcohol concentration (BAC), even at BAC levels below the legal limit for adults ages 21 years and older.2
  • Among U.S. high school students who drove in 2023, about 5% reported driving after drinking alcohol.3 Also, among all high school students, about 16% reported riding with a driver who had been drinking alcohol.3A
  • Among U.S. high school students who drove in 2017, about 13% drove when they had been using cannabis.45A

Keep reading: Risk Factors for Teen Drivers

Young adult drivers

  • Among drivers involved in fatal crashes in 2022, the percentage of drivers who were impaired by alcohol was highest among drivers 21–24 years old and 25–34 years old (29% and 28%, respectively).6
  • Adults ages 21–24 had the highest prevalence of driving after having too much to drink (3.3%) when compared with all adults in 2018.7A

Men

  • Driving while impaired is more common among men. 23% of male drivers involved in fatal crashes were impaired by alcohol at the time of the crash compared with 17% for female drivers in 2022.6
  • Self-reported driving under the influence of alcohol, marijuana, or illicit drugs is higher among men than women.378

American Indian and Alaska Native People

  • The percentage of traffic deaths involving an alcohol-impaired driver was highest in 2021 among non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaska Native people (43% versus 31% overall).9

Keep Reading: Risk and Protective Factors for Tribal Road Safety

Motorcycle drivers

  • A higher proportion of motorcyclists drive while impaired compared with drivers of other types of vehicles. For example, 28% of motorcycle drivers involved in fatal crashes in 2022 were impaired by alcohol, compared with 25% of passenger car drivers.6

Drivers who don't always wear a seat belt

  • Not always wearing a seat belt is more common among people who drive after drinking alcohol.710
  • A higher percentage of alcohol-impaired drivers killed (64%)B were not wearing a seat belt compared with drivers with no alcohol in their system (42%), among all drivers killed in crashes in 2022.6

Drivers with prior DWI (driving while impaired) convictions

  • The percentage of drivers with prior DWI convictions was three times higher among alcohol-impaired drivers involved in fatal crashes than among drivers with no alcohol in their system in 2022.6
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Content Source:
National Center for Injury Prevention and Control
  1. Relevant survey questions ask about behavior in the past 30 days.
  2. These percentages are based on passenger vehicle occupants for which seat belt use/nonuse was known.
  1. Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Fatality Facts 2022: Teenagers. Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Accessed 9 October 2024.
  2. Voas RB, Torres P, Romano E, Lacey JH. Alcohol-related risk of driver fatalities: an update using 2007 data. J Stud Alcohol Drugs. 2012;73(3):341–350. doi:10.15288/jsad.2012.73.341
  3. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 1991-2023 High School Youth Risk Behavior Survey Data. Available at https://yrbs-explorer.services.cdc.gov/. Accessed on October 8, 2024.
  4. Kann L, McManus T, Harris WA, Shanklin SL, Flint KH, Queen B, Lowry R, Chyen D, Whittle L, Thornton J, Lim C, Bradford D, Yamakawa Y, Leon M, Brener N, Ethier KA. Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance — United States, 2017. MMWR Surveill Summ. 2018;67(8):1–114. doi:10.15585/mmwr.ss6708a1
  5. Li L, Hu G, Schwebel DC, Zhu M. Analysis of US Teen Driving After Using Marijuana, 2017. JAMA Netw Open. 2020;3(12):e2030473. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.30473
  6. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Traffic Safety Facts 2022 Data: Alcohol-Impaired Driving (Report No DOT HS 813 578). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, National Center for Statistics and Analysis; August 2024.
  7. Barry V, Schumacher A, Sauber-Schatz E. Alcohol-impaired driving among adults—USA, 2014–2018. Inj Prev. 2022;28(3):211–217. doi:10.1136/injuryprev-2021-044382
  8. Azofeifa A, Rexach-Guzmán BD, Hagemeyer AN, Rudd RA, Sauber-Schatz EK. Driving Under the Influence of Marijuana and Illicit Drugs Among Persons Aged ≥16 Years — United States, 2018. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2019;68(50):1153–1157.
  9. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Race and Ethnicity: 2021 data (Report No DOT HS 813 572). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, National Center for Statistics and Analysis; June 2024.
  10. Yellman MA, Bryan L, Sauber-Schatz EK, Brener N. Transportation Risk Behaviors Among High School Students — Youth Risk Behavior Survey, United States, 2019. MMWR Suppl. 2020;69(Suppl-1):77–83. doi:10.15585/mmwr.su6901a9