Drunk drivers have tragically and unnecessarily claimed the lives of too many innocent people.
Unfortunately, there remain plenty of drivers who are unwilling to make responsible choices. The deadly reality of drunk driving continues across Georgia, and the problem appears to be getting worse, not better.
Crash data for 2018
According to records from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, there were 279 recorded deaths in drunk driving accidents in Georgia in 2014.
In 2018, the last year for which full data is available, there were 375 such deaths. The 2018 deaths were not only higher than the prior year in number but in percent of overall traffic fatalities as the total number of people killed in all accidents statewide declined while the total number of people killed by intoxicated drivers rose.
In 2017, 356 out of 1,540 traffic deaths involved alcohol. In 2018, 375 out of 1,504 vehicular fatalities occurred in crashes in which alcohol was a stated factor.
Habersham County statistics
Regionally, Habersham County had the highest percent of drunk driving deaths among all of its neighboring counties between 2014 and 2018. Impaired drivers were involved in 33 percent of all traffic fatalities over those five years.
In comparison, alcohol was a contributing factor in 23 percent of all vehicular deaths in Hall County during that same five-year span of time.
If you would like to learn more about how you can get the right help after an accident caused by a drunk driver, please feel free to visit the impaired driving crash assistance page of our motor vehicle accident and personal injury website.