Last year Admiral recorded the highest number of accidents for the whole of 2017 on 15 December. But December is a month of extremes, as it also includes the day with the the lowest number of accidents recorded in the entire year; Christmas Day. In fact Admiral saw five and a half time more accident claims on 15 December 2017 compared with Christmas Day last year.
Admiral has looked at its claims data from the last five years, and every year the 25 December has the fewest accidents of any date in the calendar. On average Admiral sees just one third the number of accidents on Christmas Day as on the average day in December.
The lead up to the big day however includes some of the worst days of the year for crashes. Admiral’s data shows that over the last five years the dates that consistently see the highest number of accident claims in the month are 1st, 8th, 14th, 15th, 22nd and 23rd December.
Thankfully by Christmas Eve, as people head home for the Christmas break, Admiral has fewer accidents recorded. However, there are on average 177% more accidents on Christmas Eve and 77% more accidents on Boxing Day than there are on Christmas Day.
So, what are the most common accident claims motorists make over the Christmas break? Well not surprisingly smaller bumps and shunts tend to be the most common. Number one is having their car hit while parked and unattended, followed by incidents where they have hit another car in the rear.
Third most common is being hit in the rear by another driver and fourth is where they themselves have hit a parked car.
5 Most common types of accidents between 24th and 26th December 2013 - 17
1st Third party hit customer’s parked and unattended car
2nd Customer hit third party in the rear
3rd Third party hit customer in the rear
4th Customer hit third party’s parked and unattended car
5th Third party came out of a minor road
Although having an accident over the main Christmas holiday is thankfully rare, Admiral found people living in some places in the UK had more than others. In 2017 Cardiff saw the highest number of motorists having an accident during Christmas last year, followed by Bexley.
The Top 10 locations for motorists making an accident claim 24th and 26th December 2017
Lorna Connelly, Head of Claims for Admiral said: “When it comes to road accidents December really is a month of contrasts. In 2017 we saw both our busiest and our quietest day of the entire year for accident claims.
“The lead up to Christmas can be a chaotic time and our data shows it’s not just at home and in the shops but on the roads too. Whether you’re visiting relatives or doing some last-minute shopping, it’s easy to be distracted at this time of year so we just want to remind all motorists to stay alert, take your time and be aware of other road users. After all we have enough to think about in the lead up to Christmas without having to make a claim too.”
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