According to the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis), final results for 2025 show that 2,832 people died in traffic accidents across Germany. This constitutes an increase of 62 fatalities compared to 2024 (which saw 2,770 deaths), though the number remains roughly consistent with the figure from 2023 (2,839).
The total number of injured parties also surpassed the previous year, rising to approximately 371,000 (a 1.7 percent increase). Specifically, about 322,000 people sustained minor injuries (up 2.4 percent), while around 49,200 were seriously injured. Notably, the count of seriously injured individuals decreased, reaching the lowest level since the system began separately recording serious and minor injuries in 1991. On average, eight people died each day in 2025 due to traffic accidents, while 882 people suffered minor injuries and 135 suffered serious injuries.
Overall, Germany reported roughly 2.52 million police-recorded traffic accidents in 2025, a slight increase of 0.4 percent from the 2.51 million recorded in 2024. Of these, 2.22 million involved only property damage (an increase of 0.1 percent), while 297,000 accidents resulted in injuries or fatalities (an increase of 2.3 percent). This trend of a long-term decline in the total number of accident victims has been observed. For comparison, in 1995, nearly 9,500 people were killed and over 500,000 were injured in accidents.
Regarding driving conduct, the number of accidents where at least one party was under the influence of alcohol was 34,800 in 2025, slightly below the 2024 figure (-1.0 percent). This translates to an alcohol-related accident occurring every 15 minutes on German roads. In 2025, alcohol-related traffic accidents claimed 170 lives and resulted in 17,900 injuries. Since accidents often have multiple causes, it is common for alcohol-related incidents to also involve other misconduct, such as speeding or ignoring right-of-way rules.
Most police-recorded accidents still occurred within towns and villages, making up about three-quarters (74 percent) of incidents. These areas also recorded a high proportion of injured individuals: approximately two-thirds (66 percent) of all injured people were hurt during accidents in urban centers, a quarter (26 percent) on rural roads, and barely one-tenth (8 percent) on highways.
However, the majority of traffic fatalities were found outside of towns. This is largely attributed to higher speeds in non-urban areas. Rural roads present additional risks, including the lack of separation from oncoming traffic, poor overtaking opportunities, and unprotected objects like trees near the roadway. Fifty-six percent of all traffic accident fatalities occurred on rural roads, followed by 34 percent in urban areas, and 10 percent on highways.
In terms of absolute numbers, 1,580 people died on rural roads in 2025, with about 96,500 people injured. The majority of deceased individuals on rural roads were driving passenger vehicles (54 percent of fatalities and 67 percent of injuries). On highways, 292 people lost their lives due to traffic accidents, including 177 passenger vehicle occupants, 59 occupants of goods vehicles (such as lorries or semi-trucks), and 34 motorcycle drivers.
The greatest volume of cycling and pedestrian traffic occurs within built-up areas, which heavily influences accident statistics. In 2025, 960 people died in urban traffic accidents. Of these, 63 percent were cycling (285 fatalities) or walking (317 fatalities). Of those killed while cycling in urban areas, 42 percent were riding an e-bike (119 fatalities), compared to slightly more than half (58 percent) on a conventional bicycle (166). E-scooter accidents are also predominantly an urban phenomenon; 26 out of the 33 people who died in E-scooter accidents in 2025 did so within town limits, though their proportion of all urban deaths remained relatively low at 2.7 percent.
Speeding or failure to adjust speed remains the most common cause of fatal traffic accidents. In 2025, 29 percent of traffic fatalities and 13 percent of all injuries occurred in accidents where at least one involved person exceeded the legal speed limit or drove too fast for the road or weather conditions, resulting in 812 deaths and 48,700 injuries. Furthermore, in 15 percent of all injury-related accidents, one or more participants were cited for either insufficient following distance or failing to observe right-of-way.
Speeding is particularly critical on highways, where 42 percent of fatalities were related to speed incidents (124 deaths). On rural roads, 34 percent of fatal accidents were due to speed (532 deaths), while the share in urban areas was 16 percent (156 deaths).
Demographically, the statistician reported that 74 children under 15 died in traffic accidents in 2025, up from 53 the year before. In 2025, roughly 29,200 children were injured (+7.3 percent), meaning that on average, a child was injured every 18 minutes in a traffic accident. These deaths included 31 passenger vehicle occupants, 22 pedestrians, and 13 cyclists.
Finally, the number of seniors aged 65 and older injured in traffic accidents rose to 56,100 in 2025 (+4.6 percent). The number of seniors killed in this age group also increased by 14 lives compared to the previous year, totaling 1,115. Consequently, 39 percent of all traffic fatalities in 2025 occurred among individuals aged 65 or older. Most of the seniors killed (414) were in passenger cars, while 148 seniors died riding an e-bike and 138 died on a conventional bicycle.
