New Mexico is ranked fifth in the country for deadly drunken driving accidents per capita  according to a report from Safewise. That’s just the first in a series of facts about drunk driving accidents that may surprise you.

Roadrunner Law Firm is dedicated to serving the victims of drunk driving accidents. We know how to win their cases and we don’t pull our punches. If you’ve been hurt by a drunk driver, call us immediately for a free consultation with our drunk driver accident lawyers.

Recent Data Reveals New Mexico Drivers Are Some of the Worst in the US

Based on NHTSA data, New Mexico not only ranked fifth for deadly car accidents involving alcohol, but also ranked fifth for the most careless driving cases. Unfortunately, this isn’t all. We also rank 12th for speeding and 10th for the most drunk driving arrests. People are getting drunk and driving recklessly in New Mexico, and innocent people are paying the cost.

Pre-Covid Data Shows Drunk Driving Details

Responsibility.org has a report that shows how New Mexico stacks up against the national average. The data is from 2018, the most recent year where data is available. Here are some of the highlights, or lowlights from this and other reports:

• 27% of all fatal car crashes involved alcohol impairment, and 68% of those were WAY over (above .15 BAC)
• The majority of fatal car crashes involving alcohol had drivers OVER 21 – this is not a young person problem only.
• 18% of kids age 12 – 20 report drinking alcohol in the past month
• December is the most common month for impaired crashes in New Mexico
• 1/3 of all crashes in New Mexico involve driver inattention
• The worst area for drunk driver crashes is Central Avenue around Broadway Boulevard in Albuquerque.
• There were 2,237 alcohol involved crashes in New Mexico in 2019
• 1000 alcohol involved crashes in New Mexico in 2019 caused injury
• 150 alcohol involved crashes in New Mexico in 2019 caused death

Why so many drunk drivers in New Mexico?

Local law enforcement says “The problem is, a majority of intoxicated drivers drive drunk many times before they ever get caught.” This conforms to the data we see which shows that currently most of the severe accidents involving drunk drivers are not young drivers, but more experienced ones. A driver might drink and drive home once and make it safely, so he assumes he has the skills to drive himself home safely every time. Of course this is thoughtless and selfish.

We as a state need to get better at encouraging each other to drink responsibly and to hand the keys over when drinking. Our neighbors and families are paying the price in pain and suffering and even death.