Driving is a way of life in the United States. Just because driving a motor vehicle is a daily occurrence does not mean that you should not take driving seriously every time you get behind the wheel. Here are some fatal auto accident factoids to remind you how serious of a job it is to get behind the wheel of a motor vehicle.

According to the Federal Highway Administration as of October 2004 there were nearly 200,000,000 licensed drivers in the United States. The amount of men and women with licenses are nearly equal.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has reported that over 43,000 people died in motor vehicle crashes in 2002.

The NHTSA states that motor vehicle traffic crashes were the 8th leading cause of death in all ages in 2002. If you broke this statistic down by age you will find that vehicular crashes were the number one cause of death for ages 3 to 33.

Nearly 18% of licensed drivers are under 25. Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death in the age group of 15 to 20 according to the National Safety Council.

The National Safety Council (NSC) notes that although young drivers represent only 6.6% of America's licensed drivers they are involved in 14.8% of fatal crashes. This is due to inexperience.

Young drivers are involved in fatal traffic accidents at over twice the rate of the rest of the driving population.

Over 20% of the licensed drivers are over 60. Senior drivers are at the other end of the age spectrum but are also involved in more fatal crashes than the normal middle aged citizen.

In a research paper regarding older drivers the NSC found that the high fatality rate in senior drivers might not be due to slow reaction time. The NSC found that elderly aged drivers over 70 involved in an accident are more than 1.7 times likely to be hospitalized or killed.

The NHTSA makes an annual traffic safely assessment to see how we are doing as drivers. The 2004 assessment report showed, as expected, an increase in the amount of vehicle miles traveled by people.

In 2004 occupant fatalities increased in large truck, sport utility vehicles (SUVs) and motorcycles. Passenger vehicle fatalities in roll-overs have also increased.

I do not want to leave you believing there is only bad news concerning fatal crashes. Some statistics show improvements in certain areas.

According to the NHTSA 2004 assessment report the number of alcohol related accidents have decreased for the second year in a row.

Other good news is that fatalities in unrestrained passenger vehicles have also declined. This is believed to be a direct result of continual safety belt laws education and new state laws.

Finally in 2004 twenty seven states had a reduction in the total amount of fatalities within their state.

You should not be afraid to drive your vehicle. What you should be aware of is that there are certain risks involved when driving. What you can do is try to be a safe, defensive driver every time you get into the driver's seat.