TULSA, Okla. — Road rage incidents are on the rise as temperatures climb, and the financial impact goes far beyond potential accidents.
Aggressive driving behaviors can lead to substantial insurance premium increases that hit drivers hard in their wallets.
When summer temperatures soar, so do incidents of road rage.
"Like it actually can mean a lot more than we think it will -- over the past few years, we know each summer has been getting hotter than the summer before. Um, and that adds extra stress to drivers when they're commuting to work," Martin said.
She notes a dramatic increase in road rage incidents in recent years.
"In 2018 there were only 58 documented deaths related to road rage, that jumped up to 118 in 2023," Martin said.
As of this month, the average annual premium for full coverage car insurance is over $2,600 a year.
Get a speeding ticket, and that amount jumps to almost $3,300 annually – a 22% increase.
If you cause an accident associated with road rage, the average premium increases by a whopping 44%.
Insurance hikes aren't the only financial consequence of road rage incidents.
"You might be involved in an accident. Then you have running a red light, failure to yield and then that's, if you're actually threatening someone with your car, making rude gestures, those are actual other citations too. So then you have court costs, attorney fees. Are you missing work because you have to go to court?" Martin said.
Additionally, if you cause an accident during a road rage incident, you may be responsible for paying your collision deductible, which typically runs between $500 and $1,000. If you don't have collision coverage, you'll be out-of-pocket for the total cost of repairs.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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