These Numbers Tell The Safety Story

All figures are from the U.S. Coast Guard's 2012 Recreational Boating Safety Statistics, the latest official record of reported recreational boating accidents. The full report is available online at: http://www.USCGBoating.org/statistics/accident_statistics.aspx.

• Drowning was reported as the cause of death in almost three-fourths of all fatalities.

• Approximately 85 percent of those who drowned were not wearing life jackets.

• In 2012, the Coast Guard counted 4,515 accidents that involved 651 deaths, 3,000 injuries and approximately $38 million dollars of damage to property as a result of recreational boating accidents.

• Approximately 14 percent of deaths occurred on boats where the operator had received boating safety instruction.

• Operator inattention, operator inexperience, improper lookout, machinery failure and excessive speed are the top five primary contributing factors in accidents.

• Alcohol use is the leading contributing factor in fatal boating accidents; it was listed as the leading factor in 17 percent of the deaths.

• Twenty-four children under age thirteen lost their lives while boating in 2012. Forty-two percent of the children who died in 2012 did so from drowning.

• The most common types of vessels involved in reported accidents were open motorboats (47%), personal watercraft (19%) and cabin motorboats (15%).

National Recreational Boating Statistics

• Fatalities: 651

• Drownings: 459

• Injuries (requiring medical treatment beyond first aid): 3,000

• Boating Accidents: 4,515

• Property Damage: $38,011,601

• Number of registered recreational boats in the U.S .: 12,101,936