The Orlando, Florida, metropolitan area, including the area south of the city where the theme parks sit, is Florida’s tourism hub. Orlando is the top tourist destination in the U.S., with over 74 million visitors in 2022. Over 1.4 million Orange County residents work in Orlando and commute through the tourist traffic daily, which contributes to many car accidents.
When car accidents happen in Orlando, accident victims can suffer severe injuries or even death. If you were in a crash, Payer Personal Injury Lawyers can help. We have decades of experience helping victims of car accidents recover the compensation they deserve.
Contact us today to schedule a free consultation with an Orlando car accident lawyer.
How Payer Personal Injury Lawyers Can Help You After An Auto Accident In Orlando, FL
Payer Personal Injury Lawyers was founded over twenty years ago to help accident victims in Orlando, Florida, recover compensation after accidents and personal injuries. Since we were founded, our Orlando car accident attorneys have recovered over $100 million in compensation for our clients.
After an accident, our law firm helps by:
- Providing a free consultation to evaluate your case and go over your options
- Investigating to gather evidence and identify at-fault parties
- Calculating your damages
- Communicating and negotiating with insurers
- Fighting aggressively in court if the insurer refuses to settle
Car accident injuries can cause long-term disabilities and massive financial losses. Contact Payer Personal Injury Lawyers for a free consultation to discuss the compensation you can seek for your car accident injuries.
How Many Car Accidents Happen In Orlando?
This is a tricky question to answer because, as most residents know, much of what is viewed as Orlando sits outside the city limits. If you only look at the City of Orlando, the Florida Traffic Safety Dashboard reports 18,592 motor vehicle accidents in 2023 (this is partial data, however, covering only up to mid-November).
The latest full year from which data are available is 2022. That year, there were 23,372 total accidents in Orlando. These crashes happen primarily in downtown Orlando, around Universal Orlando Resort, and at the airport.
You get a much more complete picture when you look at the entire Orlando metropolitan area, including Orange County, parts of Osceola County, and parts of Seminole County. This territory includes Kissimmee, International Drive, and, most importantly, Walt Disney World.
Using the broader Orlando metropolitan area, the Florida Crash Dashboard from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV) reported 37,665 total traffic accidents in 2023. This broader view brings in clusters of crashes in the theme park and resort areas that fall outside Orlando’s city limits.
Orlando Motor Vehicle Accident Statistics
The Orlando metropolitan area has more crashes than it should, based on its share of Florida’s population. The metro area has roughly 6.5% of Florida’s population, but it accounts for over 9% of the state’s traffic accidents and around 11% of its non-fatal injury accidents. In other words, Orlando had more traffic accidents than it should have in 2023, especially those resulting in injuries.
Injuries And Deaths In Orlando Motor Vehicle Accidents
Traffic accidents in the Orlando metro area in 2023 included:
- 268 fatal crashes
- 17,881 non-fatal injury crashes
- 19,516 property damage only crashes
The available statistics include bicycle accidents, pedestrian accidents, and motorcycle accidents as well. In 2023, there were:
- 756 bicycle crashes
- 921 pedestrian crashes
- 794 motorcycle crashes
Based on these figures, there are nearly 50 injury-causing accidents in the Orlando area every day, on average.
Dangerous Times To Drive In Orlando
The metropolitan area has an unusual traffic crash pattern compared to other cities. In most cities, traffic crashes peak during the afternoon commute around 5 p.m. In the Orlando metro area, traffic crashes peak between 9 p.m. and 10 p.m., according to the Florida Traffic Safety Dashboard. This time matches up with the closing time for many of the attractions in the area.
The weekly pattern also differs from other cities. In many cities, traffic accident numbers tend to increase on weekdays, with Friday having the highest number of crashes. The numbers drop on weekends. Orlando sees the opposite. Crash numbers in Orlando are generally low during the week and peak on Saturday.
Causes Of Orlando Car Accidents
Traffic accidents in the Orlando metro area tend to happen on highways and roads between intersections rather than at intersections. Road crashes tend to result from:
- Distracted driving
- Unsafe lane changes
- Tailgating
- DUI accidents
- Head on crashes
- Highway crashes
- Intersection crashes
- Rear-end crashes
- Speeding accidents
According to the Florida Traffic Safety Dashboard, distracted driving is the top cause of car accidents in Orlando. This makes sense in two respects. First, tourist drivers in Orlando do not know the metro area’s streets. As a result, they often fail to focus on traffic and instead focus on GPS devices or maps.
Second, heavy traffic compounds distracted driving. Distracted drivers have a lower risk of hitting someone when traffic is light. But congestion means a driver could hit another vehicle with even the briefest distraction.
Schedule A Free Consultation With Our Orlando Car Accident Law Firm
Car accidents in Orlando can cause disabling injuries or even death. Contact Payer Personal Injury Lawyers for a free consultation to discuss your car accident and the compensation you can pursue for your injuries.
