Did you know that motor vehicle accidents (MVAs) are the leading cause of work-related fatalities and among the most expensive claims in the workers compensation system?
Despite significant improvements in workplace safety over the past two decades, the road remains a dangerous place for workers.
According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, almost one-third of jobs require some amount of driving, meaning the workforce has significant exposure to MVAs. These accidents remain a challenge for the workers compensation industry and can result in serious injuries and costly claims.
Large Losses Ramping Up
MVAs account for only 5% of workers compensation lost-time claims, but they account for 10% of their benefit costs, and this share of dollars has grown in the past decade. This difference in the share of claims versus losses exists because MVAs are the most expensive type of workers compensation lost-time claim, costing over $100,000 on average—70% more than the average lost-time claim.
Large losses are one part of the story; the share of claims costing over one million dollars due to motor vehicle accidents has more than tripled in the past two decades. The MVA share of these losses has also grown during this time. MVAs account for about one in five dollars of benefit costs on claims of at least one million dollars.
As mentioned above, MVAs are the number one cause of work fatalities. In fact, they account for twice as many worker deaths as the next highest cause. Four out of every ten fatalities in the workers compensation system are caused by a motor vehicle accident.
Cost Drivers
Factors that impact the outsized share of losses from MVAs include:
- Crash physics: With both high-speed and heavy vehicles involved, MVAs are high-energy accidents with destructive potential unlike almost anything else in the workers compensation system.
- Complex injuries: Compared to the average lost-time claim, MVAs are more than twice as likely to cause workers multiple injuries. While areas of the body that are prone to injury in a car accident, like the neck and lower back, aren't especially costly to treat, it adds up when workers are hurt in multiple places. Additionally, injuries to the head and lower extremities tend to be far more costly when due to an MVA.
- Multiple claimants: Half of same-occurrence claims are due to MVAs. A crash is ten times as likely to injure multiple coworkers compared to the average workplace accident.
- Third parties: Collisions involving another vehicle account for nearly half of all MVA workers compensation lost-time claims. The high degree of third-party involvement creates the potential for subrogation. One in four MVA lost-time claims experience a subrogation recovery. And despite this, MVA claims still cost 70% more on average.
A Persistent Problem
While overall workers compensation lost-time claim frequency has steadily declined since 2012, MVA frequency has not shown the same improvement, except for a decrease during the pandemic due to lockdowns and a shift to remote work. The limited post-pandemic data suggests that the flat trend in MVA frequency observed from 2012 to 2019 may continue. Preventing these accidents remains an area of opportunity for improvement.
Distracted driving, in large part due to cell phones, is one of the leading causes of MVAs. Studies have found that one in three crashes involve a driver using their phone within a minute of the crash. Additionally, the combined effect of an influx of new and inexperienced drivers and more miles driven overall has contributed to MVA frequency staying flat while the frequency of all lost-time claims declined in the years prior to the pandemic.
Safety Technology Gaining Traction
A bright spot has been the trucking industry, which has recently experienced several consecutive declines in MVA frequency. This is significant because trucking (Class Code 7219) is currently the number one class code in terms of workers compensation premium.
Several factors are potentially contributing to this decline in frequency, including an increased focus on safety from employers and recent regulations impacting motor carriers and drivers.
Examples of recent regulations include:
- Most new truck tractors must now come equipped with electronic stability control
- The recently required use of electronic logging devices aims to combat driver fatigue
- The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s new Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse is intended to promote compliance with drug and alcohol laws
Proactive safety measures may also be playing a role in reducing MVA frequency for the trucking industry. Advances in logistics, including vehicle telematics and GPS tracking, have given employers more oversight of deliveries and greater flexibility in responding to changing conditions. Additionally, dash cameras that monitor the inside of the vehicle are being integrated with AI and used to encourage safe driving by providing feedback when distracted driving is detected.
Emerging technologies, such as autonomous trucks, have the potential to transform road safety. While mainstream adoption is still on the horizon, the trucking sector has shown that MVA frequency can be reduced with current technology. Because at the end of the day, it’s all about getting workers home safely.
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