As more and more Tesla cars take over American streets, more bad drivers are coming with them, according to a new study.
The research compiled by LendingTree found that Tesla is ranked number one among its “car brands with the worst drivers” list. The team compared road incidents by auto manufacturer for every 1,000 drivers last year and found that Tesla cars had the highest rate of crashes, speeding citations, and DUIs with 36.94 incidents for every 1,000 drivers. By contrast, Tesla drivers recorded 31.13 incidents for every 1,000 drivers in the previous year.
Related: Tesla Cybertruck Involved in First Reported Crash With Toyota Corolla
In turn, insurance rates in several states are on the rise partially because of these traffic incidents.
“The immediate impact is on the individual,” LendingTree’s Rob Bhatt said in a statement. “Most of these incidents are going to make your rates go up. The insurance rates for specific models are more impacted by accidents than some of these other incidents. If Tesla drivers get into accidents at a higher rate than other drivers, insurance companies will probably spend more to insure them than other vehicles. This, in turn, may prompt insurance companies to charge higher rates to insure a Tesla.”
Related: Tesla Sued Over Fatal Car Accident and Battery Fire
Read up on the 10 brands with the worst drivers and keep your eyes open when on the road.
- Tesla
- Ram
- Subaru
- Audi
- Mazda
- Volkswagen
- BMW
- Honda
- Infiniti
- Toyota
Related: Tesla Seen on Video Bursting Into Flames Due to Hurricane Flooding
As for the cars with the least number of road incidents, many classic (and some defunct) brands dominate the list. Mercury and Pontiac sit at the top and other American names like Cadillac, Chrysler, Lincoln, Buick, Dodge, Chevrolet, and Ford round out the list.
- Mercury
- Pontiac
- Cadillac
- Chrysler
- Lincoln
- Buick
- Dodge
- GMC
- Mitsubishi
- Chevrolet + Ford
