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Motoring news

Road injuries 'higher than Government figures'

28/07/2009

The number of people seriously injured on Britain's roads may be higher than official figures suggest, the UK statistics watchdog has warned.

And the UK Statistics Authority (UKSA) is calling for improvements to the way that Department for Transport (DfT) figures are produced, in order for them to remain sanctioned as national statistics.

According to the most recent figures, 2,538 people were killed and another 26,034 seriously injured on the UK's roads in 2008. However, while the number of recorded fatalities is considered very accurate, statisticians are concerned that the true number of injuries could be twice as high.

Inaccuracies can arise because DfT figures are based on reports filed by the police within 30 days of an accident, but while the police undertake to record injuries it is not a statutory obligation. In addition, many injury-accidents are not reported to the police.

In its Road Casualty Statistics report, the UKSA said that future figures should include an estimate of the possible under-reporting of injuries, and that the Government should publish plans to improve the reporting of data by police forces.

In addition, the report highlights the concerns of the House of Commons Transport Committee, which called into question the accuracy of the data earlier this month.

A DfT spokesperson told The Telegraph that the department was confident of meeting the authority's requirements by the November deadline.

Conservative transport spokesperson Theresa Villiers said that the inaccuracy was of "huge concern".

"This is a crucial area of policy on which lives depend and it is vitally important to have reliable data on what the real facts are."

Writing in his blog, BBC home editor Mark Easton explained that accurate figures were important because "the level of carnage caused by drivers shapes road safety policy".