A seat belt takes just one second to fasten, but that simple action can mean the difference between life and death in a crash. In Florida alone, an average of 854 people lose their lives each year while not wearing a seat belt, giving the state the second-highest total in the country. While Florida’s per-capita fatality rate is not among the nation’s worst, its large population means hundreds of preventable deaths still occur every year.
This study, conducted by Blakeley Car Accident & Personal Injury Lawyers, analyzes 2020 to 2024 fatal crash data from the NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), with fatalities normalized per 100,000 residents using U.S. Census Bureau population estimates.
The 10 States Where Not Wearing a Seat Belt Is Most Likely to Be Fatal
| Rank | State | Unrestrained Fatality Rate (per 100K) | Avg. Annual Unrestrained Deaths |
| 1 | Montana | 8.49 | 95 |
| 2 | Wyoming | 8.42 | 49 |
| 3 | Alabama | 7.48 | 380 |
| 4 | Mississippi | 7.37 | 217 |
| 5 | Missouri | 6.95 | 430 |
| 6 | Louisiana | 6.86 | 316 |
| 7 | South Carolina | 6.85 | 363 |
| 8 | Arkansas | 6.55 | 200 |
| 9 | New Mexico | 6.44 | 136 |
| 10 | Kentucky | 6.23 | 282 |
All 10 states exceed the national average of 3.41 per 100,000 by at least 83%, with seven recording rates at least double that figure. Six of the 10 are in the South, and none rank among the nation’s 10 most populous states, a pattern consistent with higher-speed rural driving environments and longer distances to trauma centers.
The 10 States Where Unbuckled Fatality Risk Is Lowest
| Rank | State | Unrestrained Fatality Rate (per 100K) | % Below National Avg. |
| 50 | New York | 0.97 | -71.5% |
| 49 | Hawaii | 1.12 | -67.0% |
| 48 | Rhode Island | 1.51 | -55.6% |
| 47 | New Jersey | 1.55 | -54.4% |
| 46 | Minnesota | 1.65 | -51.6% |
| 45 | Massachusetts | 1.73 | -49.2% |
| 44 | Washington | 1.75 | -48.6% |
| 43 | Alaska | 1.85 | -45.6% |
| 42 | California | 1.95 | -42.6% |
| 41 | Utah | 1.97 | -42.2% |
Every state on this list falls at least 42% below the national average, with New York the only state in the country to record a rate below 1.0 per 100,000. Four of the 10 are in the Northeast and four in the West, while no Southern state appears.
The 10 States With the Most Unrestrained Deaths by Total Count
| # | State | Avg. Annual Deaths | Rate (per 100K) | Rate Rank |
| 1 | Texas | 1,095 | 3.64 | 28th |
| 2 | Florida | 854 | 3.83 | 25th |
| 3 | California | 766 | 1.95 | 42nd |
| 4 | Georgia | 509 | 4.65 | 20th |
| 5 | North Carolina | 500 | 4.66 | 19th |
| 6 | Missouri | 430 | 6.95 | 5th |
| 7 | Ohio | 424 | 3.59 | 29th |
| 8 | Tennessee | 394 | 5.57 | 13th |
| 9 | Alabama | 380 | 7.48 | 3rd |
| 10 | Pennsylvania | 367 | 2.82 | 33rd |
The top five states by raw count account for 32.8% of all unrestrained deaths nationally, and the top 10 account for 50.3%. Only Missouri and Alabama appear on both the per-capita and volume top 10 lists, meaning most high-count states owe their totals to population size rather than elevated per-capita risk.
How Unrestrained Fatality Risk Breaks Down by Region
| Region | Rate (per 100K) | Share of Deaths | Share of Population | States in Top 10 / Bottom 10 |
| South (16 states) | 4.64 | 52.5% | 38.5% | 6 / 0 |
| Midwest (12 states) | 3.35 | 20.3% | 20.7% | 1 / 1 |
| West (13 states) | 2.57 | 17.9% | 23.7% | 3 / 5 |
| Northeast (9 states) | 1.85 | 9.3% | 17.2% | 0 / 4 |
The South generates 52.5% of all unrestrained deaths, with 38.5% of the population, recording a rate 2.5 times the Northeast’s 1.85. The West shows the widest internal variation, containing both the two highest-rate states (Montana, Wyoming) and several of the lowest (Hawaii, Washington, California).
Methodology
This analysis examined all fatal motor vehicle crashes recorded in the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) for all 50 U.S. states during the 2020 to 2024 study period. Records were filtered to isolate vehicle occupants classified as unrestrained, defined as not wearing a seat belt or other restraint system at the time of the crash. Five-year annual averages were calculated for each state to smooth year-to-year fluctuations. Average annual population figures for 2020 to 2024 from the U.S. Census Bureau were used to produce an unrestrained fatality rate per 100,000 residents. States were then ranked from highest to lowest by this rate, and regional classifications followed U.S. Census Bureau definitions: South (16 states), Midwest (12 states), West (13 states), and Northeast (9 states).
Data Sources
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS): https://cdan.dot.gov/query
U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates: https://www.census.gov
Research Dataset: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1IK9HhL2slaE-gJXyTswtw6DvuRlte10AN0QWA85pxBM/edit?gid=0#gid=0
Study by: https://www.floridainjuryadvocate.com/
About Blakeley Car Accident & Personal Injury Lawyers
Blakeley Car Accident & Personal Injury Lawyers is a Florida-based personal injury law firm that represents individuals injured in motor vehicle accidents and families affected by wrongful death. The firm handles personal injury and wrongful death claims and advocates for fair compensation on behalf of its clients.
