Replace the Word 'Accident' With 'Crash,' Advocates Demand

Steph Willems
by Steph Willems

Human error causes most vehicle wrecks, so why is “car accident” still the go-to term?

A safety advocate-led movement is gaining steam to change the lexicon, the New York Times reports, with “crash” being the preferred word to replace “accident.”

With fatal crashes on the rise on U.S. roads, policymakers are joining the groundswell of voices calling for eradication of the word, which they say absolves blame.

“When you use the word ‘accident,’ it’s like, ‘God made it happen,'” said National Highway Traffic Safety Administration head Mark Rosekind in a recent speech. “In our society, language can be everything.”

The state of Nevada, as well as New York City, San Francisco and other cities, have already passed laws to erase the word from police and insurance documents. Transportation departments in 28 states also avoid the word.

As of April, Associated Press news reports will use “crash” whenever driver negligence is proven or suggested.

While texting and rear-ending isn’t an act of God, roughly six percent of vehicle incidents can’t be attributed to driver error. A debris-caused tire blowout, storm-tossed tree limb, bolting deer or mechanical breakdown aren’t a driver’s fault any more than a bird strike is a pilot’s fault.

Still, it doesn’t look like advocates want to make a distinction. The word “crash” doesn’t assign blame, but “accident” removes all doubt as to driver fault. Expect the new blanket term to slowly replace the other.

Still, there’s pushback to the movement. The New York Times report points to a debate that raged on a Facebook group for traffic reporters.

“What is being solved by having this debate?” one post read. “What injustice are we correcting?”

[Image: Mark Turnauckas/ Flickr ( CC BY 2.0)]

Steph Willems
Steph Willems

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  • Furiouschads Furiouschads on May 23, 2016

    In Italy, they are in-chee-den-tee. They view them as caused by a decision.

  • -Nate -Nate on May 24, 2016

    GREAT comments ! I always like a chuckle . . about thirty years ago this came up and that time the word was ' Collision ' . . I doubt this will take but it'll be entertaining . . -Nate

  • ToolGuy This is the kind of thing you get when you give people faster internet.
  • ToolGuy North America is already the greatest country on the planet, and I have learned to be careful about what I wish for in terms of making changes. I mean, if Greenland wants to buy JDM vehicles, isn't that for the Danes to decide?
  • ToolGuy Once again my home did not catch on fire and my fire extinguisher(s) stayed in the closet, unused. I guess I threw my money away on fire extinguishers.(And by fire extinguishers I mean nuclear missiles.)
  • Carson D The UAW has succeeded in organizing a US VW plant before. There's a reason they don't teach history in the schools any longer. People wouldn't make the same mistakes.
  • B-BodyBuick84 Mitsubishi Pajero Sport of course, a 7 seater, 2.4 turbo-diesel I4 BOF SUV with Super-Select 4WD, centre and rear locking diffs standard of course.
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