Warriors returning from deployment had 13% more at-fault accidents, compared with their driving record before deployment, according to a USAA analysis of its claims data.
The insurer's findings seem to bolster ongoing research into the effects of these deployments on driving behaviors of troops long after they return.
Soldiers experienced the highest increase of at-fault accidents, at 23%, compared with the drivers' experiences before the deployment. Marines experienced a 12.5% increase in at-fault accidents; sailors, 3%, and airmen, 2%.
Those who had deployed three or more times saw a 36% increase in at-fault accidents. Troops younger than 22 had the biggest increase in accidents, with a 25% increase, compared to a 7.5% increase in those older than 29.
A Washington DC Transportation Lawyer is following the resulting trends in this research.
USAA data does not include specifics on the behaviors that contributed to the increase in accidents, because that data is not captured in claims reporting, officials said. But most accidents were caused by "losing control of the vehicle," as reported by drivers. And accidents attributed by drivers to "objects in the road" increased more dramatically after deployment than any of the other 11 causes that were tracked in the research, officials said.
The insurance company based its research on about 158,000 drivers who served on 171,000 deployments between January 2007 and February 2010 and compared their driving records to the six months before they deployed.
An associate professor in occupational therapy at the University of Minnesota, said USAA has not provided enough information on its methodology or analysis for her to comment on its research. But the information they have provided falls in line with her ongoing research into the driving behaviors of returning troops.
These behaviors aren't necessarily associated with post-traumatic stress, or traumatic brain injury. Those with PTSD and TBI may indeed have these behaviors, but these are seen throughout the returning soldier population.
This can be viewed as a reasonable carryover of ingrained maneuvers and anxieties. These are things that kept these people alive in combat. For example, in their study of driving behaviors reported in the past 30 days by about 150 National Guard troops mostly in Minnesota and South Dakota, more than 45% said they focus intently on other drivers or passengers, as compared to 15% of a group of ROTC cadets who exhibited this behavior. In addition, 25% of returning troops said they had driven through stop lights or stop signs, compared to 10% of the non-deployed ROTC cadets. When they were deployed, they became targets if they were stopped.
In addition, more than 20% of the returned troops said they had driven on the shoulder of the road, or into the oncoming lane in the past 30 days, compared to a little over 5% of the non-deployed cadets. This has been reported by some troops as a maneuver to get away from heavy traffic.
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