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How Many People Die in Thanksgiving Crashes Each Year?

Published 5 min read By Live Accident Tracker Editorial

Quick answer: Over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend in 2024, 286 people were killed in traffic crashes in the United States, and 45% of them were not wearing a seat belt, according to NHTSA. Drink-driving is the other half of the story: 868 people were killed in drunk-driving crashes during the Thanksgiving holiday period between 2019 and 2023. Thanksgiving falls on Thursday 26 November in 2026, and millions of Americans will be on the road for it.

The 2024 weekend toll

Thanksgiving is one of the busiest times of the year on American roads. NHTSA says millions of people travel over the holiday weekend, whether they are driving across town or across the country, and the crash toll reflects that volume.

  • In 2024, 286 people were killed in traffic crashes during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend.
  • The figure comes from NHTSA's own Thanksgiving travel page, which publishes the toll each year alongside its safety advice.
  • That is a heavy toll for a single long weekend built around family travel, and it is why NHTSA treats the holiday as a seat belt and sober-driving campaign every year.

The travel itself is the reason the weekend is risky. More cars on the road means more chances for a crash, and the journeys are often long, late at night, and made by drivers on roads they do not know well. A driver heading home after a family meal is tired, it is dark, and the traffic is heavier than on an ordinary weekend.

Seat belts: the 45% who were unbuckled

The most striking detail in the 2024 toll is how many of the people who died were not wearing a seat belt.

  • Of the 286 people killed over the 2024 Thanksgiving weekend, 45% were not wearing a seat belt.
  • NHTSA's message is blunt: buckle up on every trip, every time. A seat belt is one of the safest choices drivers and passengers can make, and it costs nothing.
  • The risk is not only for drivers. Passengers in the back seat need a belt too, and the driver is responsible for making sure everyone in the car is buckled before setting off.

The seat belt gap is not only an American problem. A look at seatbelt use among young passengers in Britain is set out in Are Teen Passengers Really Buckling Up?. The pattern is the same on both sides of the Atlantic: the belt is the simplest protection in the car, and it is the one people most often skip on a short or familiar journey.

Drink-driving: 868 deaths in five years

Alcohol is the second half of the Thanksgiving toll, and NHTSA counts it over five years rather than one weekend.

  • From 2019 to 2023, 868 people were killed in drunk-driving crashes during the Thanksgiving holiday period.
  • That is the toll across five Thanksgivings, and it covers the whole holiday period rather than a single day.
  • NHTSA's advice is simple: even a small amount of alcohol can affect a person quickly, and buzzed driving is drunk driving.

The drug picture matters too. NHTSA warns that drugs, including cannabis, can slow reaction time, impair judgement and make it harder to stay in lane. The agency's message for the holiday is the same for drink and drugs: if you feel different, you drive different, so do not drive at all.

Thanksgiving Eve: the riskiest night

The danger starts before the holiday itself. The Thanksgiving period begins the night before, which is often reserved for meeting up with old friends — and may involve drinking.

  • In 2023, 92 drivers were involved in fatal traffic crashes on Thanksgiving Eve.
  • Of those drivers, 33% were drunk.
  • That means one in three of the drivers in a fatal crash on the night before Thanksgiving had been drinking, on a night when many people are driving home from a bar or a reunion.

Thanksgiving Eve has become one of the biggest drinking nights of the year in the United States, and the 2023 figures show what that means on the road. The night is short, the driving is often late, and the drivers are often people who have not eaten much and have been drinking for hours.

Getting home safely

NHTSA's advice for the holiday is practical, and none of it needs new technology or extra money.

  • Make a plan before the evening starts: schedule a rideshare in advance or call a taxi.
  • Ask a sober friend for a lift, or use public transport.
  • If a friend is about to drink and drive, take their keys and let a sober driver get them home.
  • Hosts can help too: prepare to call taxis or rideshares, provide sleeping space for guests who have been drinking, or drive them home if you are sober. Collect car keys from guests who are drinking, and provide non-alcoholic options.

The plan has to be made before the first drink, not after it. Once someone has been drinking, their judgement about whether they are fit to drive is the first thing that goes.

How these numbers were counted

All figures in this article come from NHTSA's Thanksgiving travel page, which draws on the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS). The 286 deaths are the toll for the Thanksgiving holiday weekend in 2024, and the 868 drunk-driving deaths cover the Thanksgiving holiday period from 2019 to 2023. The Thanksgiving Eve figures are for 2023. FARS counts people who died within 30 days of the crash, and the latest year can be revised as reports are finalised. Live reports from today are on today's accident reports, and the full archive is on the article archive page.

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