Nevada Motorcycle Fatality Statistics
Fifty-five motorcycle fatalities were reported in Nevada in 2015. This number is down from the past two years, but it is up from 2010-2012 when the numbers were under 50. This information comes from a report by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
Most of the victims were wearing helmets at the time of the accident. In fact, only 11 were not wearing helmets with another three unknown. That leaves 41 in compliance with the law. Nevada has a universal helmet law, which states that every rider must wear a helmet regardless of age.
Because of the legal requirement, Nevada had a 79 percent helmet usage rate, which saved 26 lives in 2015. Another four could have been saved if the percentage went up to 100 percent.
In 2014, there were 71,880 motorcycles registered in the state. There was also an 87.65 fatality rate per 100,000, which is an increase over previous years even as the number of registrations have gone up slightly.
Most of the victims in motorcycle-related crashes were in the 20-29 age range in 2015 with 24. This number is more than double the next highest number. In second place was the 50-59 age range with nine deaths. Only two deaths were of victims under 20 years old.
One-third of the counties in Nevada reported at least one motorcycle-related fatality in 2015. Out of the five counties that had motorcycle deaths, three had fewer than six, while one had between six and 15 and another county had between 36 and 45. Clark County had the highest number by far with 43 for the year. This number follows an alarming trend which began in 2013 when the number almost doubled from 29 to 46.
Washoe County came in a distant second with seven fatalities for the year. This number is consistent with previous years. Interestingly enough, all of the counties with deaths to report were scattered throughout the state with one in the northeast, two in the northwest and two in the lower corner of Nevada.