West Virginia Drivers Hit Most Deer, State Farm Says

By Jamie McGee

Sept. 28 (Bloomberg) — West Virginia drivers lead the U.S. in collisions with deer for the third straight year as a larger population of the animals meets increasing traffic in once-rural areas, State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. said.

One in every 39 drivers in West Virginia is likely to hit a deer in the next 12 months, State Farm said today. The probability was 1 in 45 in last year’s study. Michigan ranked second, with odds of 1 in 78, according to State Farm claims data and motor vehicle registration counts from the Federal Highway Administration.

\”We see thousands of dollars worth of damage,\” said Spyro Nicoloudakis, co-owner of A-1 Body Shop in Charleston, West Virginia. \”Everybody, one time or another, has had an experience with hitting a deer.\”

Crashes reach their peak from October through December — deer mating season — and cause more than $1 billion in vehicle damage annually, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety said in a separate study.

via www.bloomberg.com