THE most common causes of car crashes on Cheshire’s roads have been revealed.

A combined total of 2,231 accidents across Cheshire West and Chester and Cheshire East were reported during 2018 according to Department for Transport figures, this being the most recent data available.

In both areas, the number one cause of accidents was drivers or riders failing to look properly before manoeuvring, accounting for 211 drivers in Cheshire East and 220 in Cheshire West and Chester.

This was closely followed by a failure to judge another person’s speed, with 127 in Cheshire West and Chester and 120 in Cheshire East.

The third most significant cause of accidents were caused by a poor turning manoeuvre, with 90 occurring in Cheshire East and 61 in Cheshire West and Chester.

Slippery roads – due to weather – resulted in 50 accidents in Cheshire East and 31 in Cheshire West and Cheshire, while drives or riders being careless, reckless or in a hurry accounted for 47 crashes in Cheshire East and 39 in Cheshire West and Chester.

Drink driving was to blame for 31 crashes in Cheshire East, with 10 motorists involved in accidents being impaired by drugs – either prescribed or illegal. In Cheshire West and Cheshire these figures were slightly less with 21 and six recorded to each respective area.

Further down the list, motorists’ illnesses or disabilities – both physical and mental – resulted in 35 across both areas, while a total of 17 were caused by aggressive driving across both areas.

A total of 27 accidents were caused by drivers being distracted – 19 in Cheshire East and eight in Cheshire West and Chester.