For the second year in a row Sioux Falls, S.D., remains the safest city for drivers in Allstate's annual national actuarial report of auto crash statistics.
The findings, prepared by the Northbrook, Ill.-based insurer's actuaries based on the company's automobile policyholders, found the average driver in Sioux Falls will experience an auto collision every 13.7 years compared to the national average of 10 years.
In second place for the second year in a row was Fort Collins, Colo., with an average collision every 13.6 years.
The report is an in-depth analysis by the company's actuaries of company claim data to determine the likelihood of a collision in America's 200 largest cities compared to the national average. The report defines an auto crash as any collision resulting in a property damage claim.
According to National Underwriter's Highline Data Service, Allstate is the second largest insurer of private passenger automobile with 11 percent of the market and $18.3 billion in direct premium written. The company said its auto policies represent about 12 percent of the U.S. population.
Dave Munson, Sioux Falls' mayor, said in a statement the reason for the city's safety record is the result of quality driver's education programs and good traffic engineering.
Flint, Mich., was third in the rankings, improving from 73rd place in 2005. The city averaged 13.4 years between driver accidents in the 2007 report compared with 9.8 years in 2005.
The city joined a group of four other Michigan cities in the state that saw dramatic improvement in their standings. These cities included Warren in fourth place, Sterling Heights in 12th, Grand Rapids in 24th, and Detroit 25th.
Other cities on the top 10 list included:
o Fifth–Huntsville, Ala.
o Sixth–Knoxville, Tenn.
o Seventh–Chattanooga, Tenn.
o Eighth–Colorado Springs, Colo.
o Ninth–Milwaukee, Wis.
o Tenth–Des Moines, Iowa.
Of the cities with a million or more residents, Phoenix was at the top of the list in 78th place, with a collision occurring on average every 9.8 years. At the bottom of the list was Philadelphia in 190th place, with 6.6 years between accidents.
At the bottom of the list was Newark, N.J., with a collision occurring every 5.2 years. Washington, D.C. followed close behind at 5.2 years. Both ranked at the bottom of the list in the previous two reports.
New Jersey had a total of four cities–Newark, Paterson, Jersey City and Elizabeth–in the bottom 10 of the list in the 2007 report.
The full report can be found at www.allstate.com.
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