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Deer-Vehicle Collisions Up

10/26/09 1:21 pm | reporter: Dhomonique Ricks producer: Dhomonique Ricks

search tags: deer • deervehicle • collision • crash

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Lynchburg, VA - Every 26 seconds, a driver hits a deer in the U-S according to State Farm. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety says these crashes are costly, totaling 1-billion dollars in vehicle damage each year. Insurance experts say we are seeing more of them. State Farm Insurance has classified the state of Virginia as high risk for the likelihood of deer-vehicle collisions.

In fact, a study they conducted shows the likelihood of hitting a deer in Virginia is 1 in 150. That is a 28% increase in the past five years. The study goes on to point out from July of 2008 to June of 2009; more than 48,000 collisions were the result of deer.

"It's become a very big problem. I can remember back maybe 25 years ago, you hardly ever seen a deer," said driver, Margie Craghead.

So the question we find many drivers asking is: ‘what do I do if I am driving and a deer runs out?’

“Speed up. Because if you slow down and you hit the deer the deer will go on top of the car but if you speed up, the acceleration will hopefully push the deer under your car," said driver, Michael Martin.

That is incorrect. We stopped by Laslie's Auto Body to learn proper procedure when it comes to vehicle-deer collisions. Dan Laslie tells us, most windshields are aerodynamic which means when a deer hits the glass it usually keeps going over the roof. He says the trick is not to speed up.

"The best thing you can do is slow down and apply your breaks in your lane and hope that they will just continue," said Daniel Laslie, Owner of Laslie’s Auto Body.

Martin told us another myth we often hear.

"Turn off the headlights and slam on the horn," said Martin.

This is also wrong.

"If you had no headlights on it still would have been there," said Laslie.

Also never break and swerve. If you find yourself in this position and you can't slow down, he says it is best to hit the deer. It is a benefit for insurance and safety reasons.

"It's a really bad feeling to see something hurt. It’s worse to see people hurt," said Laslie.

West Virginia is ranked number one in the U-S for deer-vehicle collisions. Virginia is in the top 10. Laslie's Auto Body tells ABC-13 they have seen hundreds of vehicles damaged by deer in the past few months. They expect to see at least 20 Monday morning, just from this weekend.

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Latest Comments on "Deer-Vehicle Collisions Up"

posted by: peprnik01 on 7:36 pm on 10/25/09

I had a permit to hunt deer in the city for the extact reason as mentioned in the article. Due to one hunter on the permit having been charged with a violation however, the other 3 hunters on the permit also lost their priviledges to hunt. If Foust was not so hard nosed about permits and not in the business to punish other hunters who have never been in trouble then the deer popultation would be lowered. THere needs to be an increase in the amount of time that hunting season lasts as well as less strict guidelines on hunting. I know if you shoot a deer in the city of lynchburg the game warden will fine you $500 for "replacement of the deer" how crazy is this notion.

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