Deer-Vehicle Collisions: The First National Study

The UK National Deer-Vehicle-Collisions (DVCs) Project was set up in 2003 through The Deer Initiative with lead funding for the study coming from the Highways Agency and the Scottish Executive.

The main aims of the project for the first three years were to assess for the first time the true nationwide scale and geographical distribution of the problem, and build a database to help identify hot spots and priority areas for mitigation.

Records of Personal Injury Accidents (PIA) arising through direct collisions or swerving as a consequence of trying to avoid deer form an important element of the present study. Information on human injury accidents involving deer in the DVC database to date extends to over 1,150 incidents.

Not all local authorities were able to abstract the relevant data for all these years, however between 2000 and 2005 we identified 785 different PIAs which specifically mentioned deer as a hazard at the scene of the accident, including 20 that led to human fatalities, 134 to serious injury and 635 causing one or more slight casualties per accident; but even within these counties the figures are likely to present only a proportion of all PIAs involving deer.

Based on extensive claims data provided by one major insurance company we have estimated that around 11,000 privately insured vehicles are likely to suffer significant damage as a result of DVCs in Britain each year. This costs approximately £13.9m in material damage. Inclusion for likely involvement of commercial vehicles at similar frequency and claims costs increase estimates to at least £17m per year. In addition to material damage there are often further hidden costs such as necessity of hire of replacement vehicles, loss of time and lost output in case of commercial vehicles, for which no allowance has been made in the above estimates.

The vast number of deer injured or killed in traffic incidents every year probably presents the single greatest welfare issue for wild deer in Britain. At an estimated total population in England of around 700,000 deer, the average risk per deer of being involved in one of the estimated 34,000 to 60,000 DVCs may be as high as one in 20 to one in eight. The risk is higher for deer in south east England where traffic density is greatest.

It is clear from our work so far that DVCs in Britain represent a serious and increasing problem in terms of human injury, the economic costs of damage and the welfare of deer. We have for the first time identified the broad overall scale and distribution of DVCs across Britain. This information will be of greatest use at a local level to the Department for Transport, the Highways Agency and Local Authorities for assessing and prioritising the need for measures to reduce deer accident risk on local roads and the trunk road network.