Baltimore Is Home To Worst Drivers In America, Allstate Says

BALTIMORE, MD — A new report from the insurance company Allstate has ranked America’s best and worst drivers in the 200 largest cities, and Baltimore made the list. Allstate gave Baltimore the dubious distinction of having the worst drivers in the country.

The average Baltimore driver reports filing a claim once every 3.8 years and is 163 percent more likely to do so than the national average. The national average for filing a claim is once a decade, according to Allstate.

Here’s a snapshot of Baltimore drivers from the Best Drivers Report 2018:

• Overall national rank: 200
• Average years between claims: 3.8
• Relative claim likelihood compared to national average: 163.2 percent
• Hard-braking events per 1,000 miles: 29.3
• 2017 overall national rank: 199

While Baltimore has the worst drivers in the country, there is one place where roads may be filled with more questionable motorists.

Massachusetts is home to three of the 10 cities with the worst drivers, according to Allstate. Last year, Boston was the city with the worst drivers in America, switching spots this year with Charm City.

Here are the 10 cities with the worst drivers:

1. Baltimore, Maryland
2. Boston, Massachusetts
3. Washington, D.C.
4. Worcester, Massachusetts
5. Glendale, California
6. Springfield, Massachusetts
7. Los Angeles, California
8. Providence, Rhode Island
9. Alexandria, Virginia
10. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

On the flip side, Texas appears to have the best drivers. The Lone Star state boasts four of the 10 cities with the best drivers, including No. 1 ranked Brownsville, where drivers go on average 13.6 years between claims. Brownsville drivers are about 26 percent less likely to be involved in a claim, the report found, though data on hard-braking wasn’t available.

Here are the 10 cities with the best drivers in America:

1. Brownsville, Texas
2. Kansas City, Kansas
3. Boise, Idaho
4. Huntsville, Alabama
5. Madison, Wisconsin
6. Laredo, Texas
7. Midland, Texas
8. Cape Coral, Florida
9. Fort Collins, Colorado
10. McAllen, Texas

The report calculated property damage frequency of Allstate insured drivers from 2015-16. The researchers used U.S. Census Bureau data to obtain population density figures. Drivewise data, which looks at hard-braking events, is based on the number of Allstate customers who voluntarily enrolled in the program. Numerous cities listed on the rankings do not have those numbers available either because limited measurable data was available or the program simply wasn’t available (California, North Carolina, SouthCarolina and Texas).

Allstate said it publishes the report only as a way to create a discussion about safe driving and raise awareness about the importance of being “safe and attentive behind the wheel.” It is not used to determine auto insurance rates.

Patch national staffer Dan Hampton contributed to this report.

Pictured, a crash near the city-county line on Washington Boulevard at Interstate 695. Photo Credit: Elizabeth Janney.