The 27,130 U.S. motor vehicle deaths in January-September 2012 represented a 6-percent increase from the motor vehicle deaths that occurred during the same 9-month period in 2011, according to the National Safety Council (NSC) Statistics Department.
Prior to 2012, motor vehicle fatalities had been on the decline: The number of deaths in 2011 represented a 2 percent decrease from 2010, according to NSC, and 2010 represented a 4 percent decrease from the 2009 numbers.
The estimated annual population death rate of motor vehicle accidents for this period of 2012 was 11.7 deaths per 100,000, an increase of 5 percent from the 2011 rate. The estimated annual mileage death rate is 1.2 deaths per 100 million vehicle miles traveled, unchanged from the 2011 rate.
NSC added that the 2.9 million medically consulted injuries caused by motor vehicle accidents during the first 9 months of 2012 signifies a 15 percent increase from the same time period in 2011. Medically consulted injuries are not comparable to previous disabling injury estimates.
These increases also have a financial fallout: The estimated cost of motor vehicle deaths, injuries and property damage through September was $207.2 billion, a 16 percent increase from 2011. The costs include wage and productivity losses, medical expenses, administrative expenses, employer costs and property damage, according to NSC.