The world's most dangerous 60 minutes on the road

Updated: 02 Jul 2026

Our analysis of official collision records from 15 countries pinpoints the 60 minutes of the day when vehicle collisions peak.

Key takeaways

Global collision data shows road accidents peak during short rush-hour windows, most commonly in the late afternoon as people travel home.
Regional patterns differ, with countries like the US, Japan and Taiwan seeing more crashes during the early morning commute, while others such as Italy and Greece peak later in the day.
Experts warn that stress, urgency and poor preparation, especially during busy periods, heighten risk, making extra caution essential.

A new study of global collision data finds that the start of the afternoon rush hour tends to see the highest number of road collisions globally. However, the 60-minute danger window varies depending on where in the world you are.

Many countries in the study, including the UK, Germany and Canada see the highest percentage of their road accidents take place around late afternoon, as people head home for the day.

However, the study shows some cultural differences. Exceptions to the early-afternoon rule include the USA, and Asian countries such as Japan and Taiwan which see more collisions on the road when drivers are on their early morning drive to work between 07:30 – 08:30.

Among Europe’s Mediterranean countries, Italy sees a late surge of road accidents during the evening between 8-9pm, whereas Greek drivers are more likely to crash during midday traffic.

Peak hours for vehicle collisions by country

Country	Time of Day With Highest Number of Collisions	Percent of Country’s Daily Collision Share
Switzerland	17:00 – 17:59	10.7%
Taiwan	07:30 – 08:29	10.0%
Norway	15:00 – 15:59	9.9%
Germany	16:00 – 16:59	8.9%
UK	16:30 – 17:29	9.0%
Finland	15:00 – 15:59	8.7%
Canada	16:00 – 16:59	8.8%
USA	07:30 – 08:29	8.6%
Japan	07:30 – 08:29	9.3%
France	17:00 – 17:59	8.5%
Poland	15:30 – 16:29	8.5%
Spain	14:00 – 14:59	7.5%
Italy	20:00 – 20:59	7.4%
Greece	12:00 – 12:59	7.3%
Costa Rica	18:00 – 18:59	6.6%

Naturally, rush hours are more dangerous times to be on the road due to the higher concentration of traffic, but it may be surprising to see the concentration of collisions in such small windows.

For example, in Switzerland, more than one in ten of the day’s road accidents happens in a single 60-minute window between 5 – 6 pm.

Alicia Hempsted
Insurance Expert

Driving risk isn’t evenly spread across the day

The prevalence of accidents during rush hours should serve as a warning that these are the times of day when we should be driving more cautiously. A combination of stress and urgency to get to your destination can easily cause lapses in concentration, leading to accidents that could have been avoided.

And it's not just other drivers to be aware of during these times. Our breakdown hotspot research found that most motorway breakdowns in the UK happen on a Friday, when people are distracted or in a rush. Many drivers heading out on a Friday may neglect important maintenance steps, like refuelling , in their urgency to hit the road.

So, during these hectic or stressful journeys, try to be extra mindful of the risks and resist the urge to rush.

^Methodology

^{Publicly available vehicle collision data were identified and raw datasets were processed and analysed with the assistance of AI tools (Claude by Anthropic) for 15 worldwide countries and territories with the most motor vehicles per capita (source:} ^Wikipedia ^{). Analysis excludes countries and territories with a population less than 1,000,000 and countries where comparable data isn’t publicly available. All primary data is drawn from official government and transport authority open data sources. Data for Australia based on records for state of Victoria only. Data correct as of June 2026. Data sets for each country available on request.}

Reviewer

Alicia Hempsted

Insurance Expert

Alicia is MoneySuperMarket's editorial content manager and deputy spokesperson. She specialises in insurance and personal finance, with a background in copywriting, digital marketing, and insurance...