Reported 2024 deaths
NHTSA’s current overview reports 644 deaths from drowsy-driving-related crashes in 2024. This is a reported-crash measure, not a complete estimate of every fatigue contribution.
Earlier crash estimates
NHTSA estimated that 91,000 police-reported crashes in 2017 involved drowsy drivers, with an estimated 50,000 injuries and nearly 800 deaths.
Research estimates are higher
NHTSA’s surveillance review notes that different methods have attributed between 2% and 20% of annual traffic deaths to drowsiness. These modelled estimates should not be presented as police counts.
Why undercounting occurs
There is no equivalent of a breath test for drowsiness, drivers may not remember a microsleep, and crash evidence is often inconclusive.
Risk periods
NHTSA identifies midnight to 6 a.m. and late afternoon as common periods for drowsy-driving crashes.
Safe interpretation
Statistics describe population risk. They cannot determine whether one person is safe to drive today.
Sources
Written by the EyeJolt Editorial Team. Published and last reviewed 2026-07-14. Editorial policy.