This is an annual update of the Social Cost of Road Crashes and Injuries statistics published by the Ministry of Transport. This update provides estimates of the average social costs per injury and per crash at June 2017 prices. The update accounts for any changes in the mix of crashes and severities by area and is based on crash and injury data from 2014 to 2016.

To ensure limited road safety resources are utilised efficiently, the cost of any safety interventions should be evaluated against the resulting benefit expressed in terms of social cost. When there are different solutions or options to a transport problem, social cost information also facilitates consistent comparison between solutions or options, especially when these solutions have different impacts on injury and crash risks.

Updated social cost estimates are incorporated into the NZ Transport Agency’s Crash Analysis System to facilitate consistent appraisal of the safety benefits from the prevention of road crashes and injuries.

The social cost of road crashes and injuries is updated annually. Past issues can be found on the MOT website.