30% of Rental Car Traffic Accidents During Summer Vacation Involve Drivers in Their 20s

Among rental car traffic accidents that frequently occur during the summer vacation season, 3 out of 10 are caused by drivers in their 20s.

The Korea Road Traffic Authority announced the "Analysis Results of Traffic Accidents During the Summer Vacation Season Over the Past 5 Years" on the 1st. According to the analysis, an average of 579.2 traffic accidents occurred daily during the summer vacation period (July 16 to August 31), resulting in 8.8 deaths and 859.2 injuries. The number of casualties is 15.1 higher than usual.

Rental car-related traffic accidents were most frequently caused by drivers in their 20s, accounting for 29.5%, followed by those in their 40s (20.8%) and 30s (19.3%). The average daily rental car traffic accidents caused by drivers in their 20s were 7.9, which is 6.0% higher than usual (7.4). Rental car drunk driving accidents were also most frequently caused by drivers in their 20s (30.7%), followed by those in their 40s (24.8%) and 30s (24.3%).

The Korea Road Traffic Authority explained that the increase in rental car traffic accidents caused by drivers in their 20s during the summer vacation season is due to the relatively low proportion of car ownership, leading to high demand for rental cars, and the short driving experience compared to other age groups, resulting in inexperienced driving.

Traffic accidents caused by drivers from other regions also surged during the summer vacation season. In Gangwon-do and Jeju-do, the average daily accidents caused by drivers from other regions increased by 31.1% and 18.3%, respectively, compared to usual. The fatality rate of death accidents by road type was highest on highways during both the vacation season (5.1) and usual times (5.3), indicating that special caution is required when driving for interregional travel.

Kim Daekyung, a researcher at the Traffic AI Big Data Convergence Center of the Korea Road Traffic Authority, said, “During the summer vacation season, people often travel in groups such as family and friends rather than alone, so the number of casualties in traffic accidents is likely to increase compared to usual.” He added, “Especially when driving rental cars, it is important to accurately understand the vehicle’s functions and driving characteristics in advance.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.