Around 40% of vehicle accidents incurring physical loss or damage occur during parking or maneuvering. The vast majority of incidents happen when reversing (amounting to more than 70% of auto liability claims and around 85% of full physical damage claims). In eight out of ten cases, the accident happens when maneuvering out of a parking space (84%); incidents rarely occur when driving into a parking space (16%). Older drivers, aged 65 and above, cause a third more accidents during parking or maneuvering than those aged between 25 and 64. These are the findings of a joint research project carried out by the Allianz Center for Technology (AZT) and Continental AG. This extensive project, analyzing almost 3,500 traffic accidents, was supported by Munich's Hochschule and Technische Universität.
Most accidents during parking and maneuvering occur when reversing
Almost half of all liability claims (41.7%) resulted from a vehicle hitting another stationary vehicle when reverse parking, and one out of every five driving maneuvers (20.1%) involved two cars bumping into each other as they were both reverse parking. "The frequency of accidents occurring during parking and maneuvering has increased by more than 30% over the past ten years. These accidents make up 44% of auto liability incidents with physical loss or damage, and 39% of full physical damage collisions," says Rüdiger Hackhausen, Head of Claims at Allianz Versicherungs-AG, emphasizing the importance of the topic. The average liability claim for these accidents totals approximately €1,700, and the average full physical damage insurance claim €2,100.
Accidents during parking and maneuvering can cause serious injury!
The proportion of parking and maneuvering accidents which cause auto liability bodily injury claims is, at 4%, considerably less than that for auto liability physical loss or damage claims. However, accidents involving pedestrians or cyclists can still lead to serious injuries. Particularly notable is the study's finding that these accidents were exclusively caused by reversing. Older pedestrians aged 65 and above were particularly heavily affected (two thirds).