10 percent of deadly accidents involve unlicensed drivers

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NJ Advance Media studied the car accidents that took place in New Jersey, focusing both on deadly accidents and on the years 2010 through 2013. What they found is that around 200 people were killed in crashes that involved people without driver's licenses -- or at least without a valid one. This meant that around 10 percent of the accidents over this time period involved these drivers. Specifically, they found that there had been 2,177 fatal crashes in that four-year span that was studied. In those crashes, 2,314 people lost their lives. There were a total of 231 unlicensed drivers. It's worth noting that this does not mean that the unlicensed drivers always caused the accidents and took the lives of others. It simply means that they were involved in the documented crashes in some way, even as victims. However, it's also interesting to look at the fact that around 50 percent of these drivers had been cited for reckless driving or careless driving in the past. In fact, many of these drivers are repeat offenders. They rack up fines and suspensions, but they are still able to get behind the wheel and in many cases, they can even get their licenses back if they just pay the money that they owe in court fees and fines. One man, who was involved in a crash that took the life of a 22-year-old woman who had just graduated from college, had his license suspended dozens of times. When a loved one is killed in a car accident, you may be able to seek compensation, whether or not the other driver has a license. Source: NJ.com, "How a startling number of fatal N.J. crashes involve unlicensed drivers, and why it's hard to stop them," Craig McCarthy, NJ Advance Media for, May. 10, 2015