Florida Records 1,049 Distracted Driving Crashes Across Its Largest Counties

KEY HIGHLIGHTS

• Florida places 10 counties in America’s 100 most populous, the third-largest contingent of any state in the ranking, behind California (15) and Texas (12).
• Distracted driving crashes across those 10 Florida counties totaled 1,049 between 2020 and 2024, accounting for roughly 14.9% of the 7,024 crashes logged across the full 100-county set.
• Orange County (Orlando) tops Florida at 3.61 crashes per 100,000 licensed drivers, 3.50x the national average, and the 2nd highest rate in the nation behind only Bexar County, Texas.

Distracted driving has become one of the most consistent contributors to crashes on Florida roads, and a new analysis of the state’s most populous counties makes clear its footprint is uneven across the Sunshine State. Multiple Florida counties sit among the most affected in the entire country, while a handful cluster below the national average.

According to an analysis by Ladah Injury & Car Accident Lawyers Las Vegas, distracted driving crash counts for 2020 to 2024 were pulled from the NHTSA Fatality and Injury Reporting System through its CDAN query tool and cross-referenced with the US Census Bureau county population estimates for the same period. Each county’s crash total was normalized to a rate per 100,000 licensed drivers, and the 100 most populous U.S. counties were ranked from highest to lowest rates relative to a national benchmark of 1.03 crashes per 100,000 licensed drivers.

Florida’s 10 Largest Counties Ranked by Distracted Driving Crash Rate, 2020 to 2024

Looking at the study, Ramzy Ladah, Founder & CEO of Ladah Injury & Car Accident Lawyers, Las Vegas, commented:

“Behind every crash in this data is a person, a family, and a community absorbing the impact. Distracted driving is among the most preventable risks on American roads, and these figures from Florida are a reminder that a single glance away from the wheel can reshape a life. Stay focused.”

Where Florida Stands Among the States With the Most Counties in the 100-County Ranking

Florida Counties Ranked by Total Distracted Driving Crash Volume, 2020 to 2024

Florida Counties Least Affected by Distracted Driving Crashes, 2020 to 2024

Methodology

The analysis draws on distracted driving crash counts for 2020 to 2024 published by the NHTSA Fatality and Injury Reporting System through its CDAN query tool, combined with 2020 to 2024 average county population estimates from the US Census Bureau. The universe covers the 100 most populous U.S. counties by that population measure. Each county’s crash count was normalized to a rate per 100,000 licensed drivers so that counties of different sizes could be compared directly. Counties were then ranked from the highest to the lowest rate, with Rank 1 indicating the county most affected and Rank 100 the least affected. A national benchmark of 1.03 crashes per 100,000 licensed drivers serves as the comparison point throughout, and findings describe the 100 most populous U.S. counties only, rather than all U.S. counties.

Data Sources

• NHTSA Fatality and Injury Reporting System (CDAN query tool) → https://cdan.dot.gov/query
• US Census Bureau, County Population Estimates (2020-2024) → https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/popest/2020s-counties-total.html
• Research Dataset → https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1KISke5aB9IPBwSz5tPBF6cfnKjrmyUekKmFVmq7MELA/edit?gid=0#gid=0
• Study by → https://www.ladahlaw.com/

About Ladah Injury & Car Accident Lawyers Las Vegas

The study was conducted by Ladah Injury & Car Accident Lawyers Las Vegas, an experienced personal injury law firm dedicated to protecting clients’ rights and maximizing claim value.