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It’s an interesting time to be driving on local Australian roads. Amid the growing size of the country’s car fleet, advancements in safety technology and oh, who could forget about the wildlife, motorists have a lot to be aware of.
And while most drivers try their best to remain vigilant, Australia's road toll reflects a much darker picture. According to the latest national data, 1333 Australians lost their lives on the road in the year to April 2026, 3.4 per cent more than in the same period last year.
A new report from the NRMA, which analysed more than 69,000 motor claims this year, found that rear-end collisions were the most common type of car accident.
NRMA's data correlates with a surge in tailgating in states such as South Australia, where the RAA – the state's peak motoring body – reported that tailgating is the state's most common road offence.
According to SA Police data, 3679 tailgating offences were recorded in South Australia, up 25 per cent over a nine-year average.
The metropolitan and eastern suburbs recorded the highest number of tailgating offences (863), while dangerous behaviour was also prevalent in the northern (838) and western suburbs (781).
Additionally, failure to give way and reversing collisions were also prevalent, while animal collisions surged.
According to the insurer, it received more than 15,000 animal collision claims in 2025, 21 per cent higher than in 2024, with kangaroos accounting for 84 per cent of all animal collisions.
The executive manager of claims at NRMA Insurance, Nick Kirkovski, warned that “animal encounters on the road increase through autumn and winter as the days become shorter and wildlife activity peaks at dusk, dawn and night”.
“Wildlife can appear on the road with little warning, which is why it’s important for drivers to stay alert, particularly when travelling long distances in regional areas.”
Though it may feel counterintuitive, numerous road safety experts told Drive in October 2025 that drivers should not swerve to avoid wildlife.
| 2026 top collision types (according to the NRMA) |
| Rear-end collisions |
| Failure to give way |
| Reversing |
| Single vehicle accident |
| Animal collisions |
| Unsafe manoeuvre |
| Hit a stationary object |
Ethan traded clothing racks for gear sticks in 2023, when he joined the Drive team after freelancing for various fashion and pop culture magazines. Since then, he has delved deep into all things automotive, from emerging social media trends and road rules to industry and consumer news, hard-hitting exposés, and everything in between. Despite a young career in automotive, Ethan's contributions to the Australian automotive industry culminated in him winning the Newspress Rising Star Journalist award in 2024.
