Storefront Crashes – A Growing Concern In The United States

Within the last decade, the rate of vehicles crashing into storefronts and other public places has greatly increased. Throughout the United States, it is estimated that there are 100 crashes each day where a vehicle collides with a convenience store, office, post office, or other public building. However, data shows that these crashes are more likely to occur at convenience stores when compared to other shopping locations or other public spaces.

During these incidents, it is very common for employees or customers to become injured or even killed by the car. Reports show that almost 16,000 people are injured, and about 2,600 people die every year from these storefront collisions. The aftermath of these incidents often leads to serious and costly lawsuits from injured victims and their families. While who is liable differs from state to state, the store or property owner is often held responsible. Especially if the proper safety precautions were not put into place to protect the building from this type of accident.

Why They Happen

There are a number of reasons why storefronts are at an elevated risk of experiencing a car crash than other buildings. One of the reasons is the layout of many convenience store’s parking lots. Most locations have limited, tight parking spots that cause people to have to park extremely close to the entryway, often with the front of the car facing the store. This, paired with the fact that many patrons of these stores are often in a rush, can greatly affect their ability to drive efficiently.

Another reason experts believe these crashes have increased is due to distracted drivers with their cell phones. While cell phones have helped people connect in many wonderful ways, they have also greatly distracted people, especially while driving.

During these accidents, it is very common for a driver to accidentally hit the gas instead of the brake when coming into the parking spot or have the car switched to drive instead of reverse when leaving.

How To Prevent Them

These catastrophic collisions are 100% preventable. Property owners can protect their employees, customers, and property from distracted drivers by installing bollards in front of their storefronts. While bollards may look like large posts in the ground, they are extremely effective at guarding buildings against accidental or malicious vehicle collisions.

Not all bollards are the same. Each is designed to withstand a different crash rating. To learn more about crash ratings and which one might work best for your application, please look at our article that is linked here.

So why do businesses and property owners not automatically install bollards in their stores? It often comes down to price. Many businesses and property owners do not think a crash will happen at their location and therefore do not want to spend the money to install the bollards. However, in the long run, the upfront cost of installing this protection will greatly outweigh the cost and guilt if an accident occurs.