Driving in Singapore may be more dangerous than you think

Did you know it may be more dangerous to drive in Singapore than many other developed countries?

Latest figures from Singapore Traffic Police show that road safety in Singapore is improving over time with a definite downward trend in fatalities since 2012.

A recent report by consumer researchers ValuePenguin, however, reveals that although the number of fatalities per vehicle on the roads is decreasing, it is still relatively high.

In fact, motorists in Singapore may actually be driving more dangerously than those in other developed countries such as America, Japan, the UK and Canada.

Simon Birch, CEO of Budget Direct Insurance, says that as a car insurer in Singapore he wanted to highlight such road safety issues to the motoring community.

He said: “This report throws up some interesting facts that we should take seriously. I feel it is important for us as an insurer and a champion of safe driving to bring the findings of this report to people’s attention.”

Making sense of road safety statistics.

The basis for measuring road safety is usually done per capita. Using this measurement, Singapore has among the lowest road mortality rates per capita in the entire world. On the surface, therefore, Singapore motorists may seem to be safer drivers than those in other developed countries. But the number of households in Singapore that actually own a car is estimated to be less than half the population. The majority of the population, therefore, is less exposed to the risks of travel by motor vehicles and their chances of getting into a car accident are much lower.

Singapore has nearly half the number of car owners than many other countries.

See the table below from ValuePenguin.

Country Percent of Households that Own a Car in 2014
Singapore 42% (2013)
United States 88%
Korea 83%
Japan 81%
Malaysia 82%
Germany 85%
United Kingdom 74%
France 83%

Statistics per capita tell one story

Singapore Traffic Police recently announced a decrease in the number of fatal accidents and fatalities, which is a continuation of a downward trend in fatalities since 2012.

In 2016, the fatality rate per 100,000 persons fell to 2.51, which is the lowest fatality rate since 1981. And using this measurement Singapore fairs well compared to the rest of the world.

In fact, Singapore had the 6th least number of fatalities per capita out of the 178 countries assessed by the World Health Organisation in 2013. Whilst these are impressive numbers and it’s good news that road fatalities are declining in Singapore it is still important to get a full picture.

Statistics per vehicle tell another story.

Using the fatality rate per vehicle measurement, Singapore fairs unfavorably compared to countries like the UK, the USA, Japan, Germany, Australia, and many others.

In 2015, there were 15.8 fatalities per 100,000 motor vehicles in Singapore. In the same year Japan faired much better at 5.3 fatalities per 100,000 vehicles.

The number of fatalities is almost three times higher in Singapore compared to that in Japan.