New road casualty figures highlight the growing importance of older road-user safety
The Department for Transport has published the final reported road casualty figures for Great Britain for 2025.
The overall picture is mixed. Road deaths fell, but the number of people killed or seriously injured increased. The figures also demonstrate that progress in reducing casualties among older people has not kept pace with the improvements achieved among many younger age groups.
The national picture
During 2025, there were:
- 1,538 road deaths, down 4% from 1,602 in 2024;
- 29,918 people killed or seriously injured, up 4% from 28,876 in 2024;
- 127,883 casualties of all severities, broadly unchanged from 2024.
Although fatalities have more than halved since 2004, the Department for Transport reports that most of the reduction in killed or seriously injured casualties occurred before 2010. Progress has been relatively limited during the past decade.
Source: Department for Transport, RRCGB 2025: Injury severity, section 1, “Main findings”, and section 2.1, “Fatalities – Numbers”.
3,382 people aged 70 and over were killed or seriously injured
In 2025, 3,382 people aged 70 and over were killed or seriously injured on Britain’s roads.
This represented approximately 11.3% of all people killed or seriously injured during the year.
The Department for Transport’s official trend judgement is that the number of people aged 70 and over killed or seriously injured has increased over the last decade. The 2025 total was slightly higher than both the 2015 and 2024 figures, although the trend has been broadly flat across the decade.
By comparison, 8,395 people under 25 were killed or seriously injured in 2025. This remains a much larger total, accounting for approximately 28% of all KSIs. However, unlike the older group, the number among people under 25 has decreased over the last decade, despite an increase between 2024 and 2025.
This is an important contrast. Younger people continue to account for a greater number of serious casualties, but the long-term direction of travel has been more favourable than it has been for people aged 70 and over.
We also need remember that for car drivers aged 70 and over, the latest Department for Transport data shows:
- 24% of all car driver fatalities in 2024 were drivers aged 70 and over.
There were 115 older car driver fatalities out of 479 car driver fatalities in total (115 ÷ 479 = 24.0%).
This is a striking statistic because drivers aged 70 and over make up around 16–17% of full driving licence holders, yet accounted for around one quarter of all car driver deaths. Much of this reflects the increased physical vulnerability (frailty) of older people in a collision, rather than necessarily indicating a higher likelihood of causing collisions.
Source: Department for Transport, RRCGB 2025: STATS19 Safety Performance Indicators for the road safety strategy, section 5, “Age related SPIs”, Table 4 and Chart 4.
The casualty population is becoming older
People aged 17 to 49 still accounted for more than half of all killed or seriously injured casualties in 2025. However, their share has reduced because casualties have fallen more rapidly among younger groups than among older people.
Since 2004, the age profile of road casualties has shifted towards older age groups. People aged 50 and over now account for a larger proportion of road deaths and serious injuries than they did in 2004.
This will partly reflect the ageing population and the growing number of older people remaining active and mobile. Nevertheless, it means that older road-user safety must become an increasingly important part of national and local road safety planning.
Source: Department for Transport, RRCGB 2025: Introduction and main findings, section 5, “Casualty demographics”, Chart 6.
Older casualties are more likely to suffer serious or fatal injuries
The figures must not be interpreted as showing simply that older people have more collisions.
The most significant finding is that, once an older person becomes a casualty, they are more likely to be seriously or fatally injured.
People aged 70 and over had the highest proportion of casualties classified as killed or seriously injured of any age group in 2025. This is likely to reflect, at least in part, increased physical vulnerability and reduced resilience to injury as people age.
This distinction is vital. Casualty severity is not the same as collision responsibility.
Source: Department for Transport, RRCGB 2025: Introduction and main findings, section 5, “Casualty demographics”.
Older pedestrians face a particularly high level of risk
When the distance travelled is taken into account:
- car-driver and car-passenger KSI rates were highest among people aged 17 to 29;
- pedestrian KSI rates were highest among people aged 70 and over.
Car drivers and pedestrians were the two largest road-user groups among KSI casualties aged 70 and over.
This shows why older-driver policy cannot be considered in isolation. Older people need to be protected whether they are driving, travelling as passengers, walking, cycling or using public transport.
Source: Department for Transport, RRCGB 2025: Introduction and main findings, section 5, “Casualty demographics”.
Road-user type also affects the risk of serious injury
Across all ages, car occupants accounted for the largest number of casualties. In 2025:
- 629 car occupants were killed;
- 11,303 car occupants were killed or seriously injured;
- 67,753 car occupants were injured at all levels of severity.
However, vulnerable road users were disproportionately represented among deaths and serious injuries. Pedestrians, motorcyclists and cyclists together accounted for more than half of all fatalities and KSIs.
A higher proportion of vulnerable road-user casualties were seriously or fatally injured. For example, 39% of motorcycle casualties were killed or seriously injured, compared with 17% of car-occupant casualties.
Source: Department for Transport, RRCGB 2025: Road user type, sections 1 and 2.1, Table 1 and Chart 1.
Ineffective observation remains a major factor
Ineffective observation by a driver, rider or pedestrian was the most frequently recorded individual Road Safety Factor during 2025. It was assigned to 50% of fatal or serious collisions where a factor was recorded, more than twice the proportion of the next most common individual factor.
This category applies across all age groups and should not automatically be attributed to older drivers. However, it reinforces the importance of:
- regular eyesight examinations;
- maintaining effective observation and scanning;
- understanding blind spots;
- managing distraction;
- ensuring that spectacles prescribed for driving are worn;
- seeking professional advice where medical, cognitive or visual changes may affect driving.
Speed factors were recorded in 52% of fatal collisions, compared with 34% of collisions overall. Distraction or impairment factors were recorded in 44% of fatal collisions, compared with 29% of all collisions.
Source: Department for Transport, RRCGB 2025: Road safety factors, sections 1 and 2.
Where serious collisions occur
The geographical data does not provide a separate breakdown for older drivers. However, it shows that KSIs are concentrated in major urban areas and along busy transport corridors.
The wider findings also show that rural roads accounted for 60% of fatalities despite carrying 45% of traffic, while single-carriageway roads accounted for 77% of fatalities.
These environments may be particularly challenging for some drivers because they can involve higher speeds, complex junctions, limited visibility and fewer opportunities to recover from an error.
Sources: Department for Transport, RRCGB 2025: Geography and place, section 1; and RRCGB 2025: Introduction and main findings, section 7, “Road type and environment”.
What should we conclude?
The evidence does not support treating all older drivers as unsafe. People age differently, and chronological age alone is a poor measure of someone’s ability to drive safely.
The figures do, however, show that:
- the number of people aged 70 and over killed or seriously injured has not reduced over the last decade;
- older casualties are more likely to sustain fatal or serious injuries;
- older pedestrians have the highest pedestrian KSI rate when distance travelled is considered;
- observation, eyesight, medical fitness and appropriate support remain important;
- Britain’s ageing population must be considered in future road safety policies.
The Older Drivers Forum believes the correct response is not to remove mobility unnecessarily. It is to help people remain safe and independent for as long as possible through regular eyesight examinations, honest consideration of medical fitness, confidence-building assessments, appropriate driver training and clear pathways to specialist assessment where concerns arise.
It is equally important to provide safe walking routes, accessible public transport and realistic alternatives for those who decide—or are advised—that it is time to reduce or retire from driving.
Britain remains one of the safest countries in the world, ranking fourth lowest among 38 countries with available 2025 fatality data. However, the Department for Transport acknowledges that the UK has made less progress in reducing road deaths over the last decade than several comparable countries.
Maintaining our international position will require a stronger and more coordinated focus on the needs of an ageing population.
Source: Department for Transport, RRCGB 2025: Geography and place, section 2, “International comparisons”.
