More than one in four auto accidents resulted in bodily injury liability claims in 2003, even though research suggests that accident rates and the seriousness of auto injuries have decreased, according to a recent study by the Insurance Research Council.
IRC's study uses the ratio of bodily injury claims for every 100 property damage liability claims to measure the likelihood that bodily injury claims will be filed in auto accidents. In 1980, 17.9 bodily injury claims occurred for every 100 property damage claims. By 2003, the bodily injury to property damage ratio had increased to 26.4. The 2003 ratio is an improvement over the ratio in 1995, however, when 29.5 bodily injury claims occurred for every 100 property damage claims.
The increase since 1980 in the bodily injury to property damage ratio is the result of opposing trends in bodily injury and property damage claim rates, according to IRC. From 1980 to 2003, the bodily injury claim rate increased by 19 percent. At the same time, the property damage claim rate decreased by 20 percent.
BI to PD Ratio, 1980 to 2003
- 2003 – 26.4
- 2002 – 26.0
- 2001 – 25.9
- 2000 – 26.8
- 1999 – 27.4
- 1998 – 28.7
- 1997 – 28.9
- 1996 – 28.7
- 1995 – 29.5
- 1990 – 26.4
- 1985 – 20.2
- 1980 – 17.9
Source: Insurance Research Council.
"Indicators such as extent of disability, days of restricted activity, and time lost from work tell us that auto accidents are producing fewer serious injuries," said Elizabeth A. Sprinkel, senior vice president of the IRC. "The good news is that auto safety campaigns and the manufacture of safer cars have made a difference. Clearly, the injury liability claim rate is influenced by the attitudes and behaviors of auto accident victims, and that rate has increased over time."
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