Fore! Golf Cart Accidents on the Rise

June 19, 2008 - You don’t have to wear your "knickers" to get "nicked" by a golf cart! With gas prices on the rise and increasing numbers of people choosing alternatives to "gas-guzzling" vehicles like SUVs, injuries from golf cart accidents are finding their way from cart paths and greens onto the streets. Two research studies announced their findings this month that almost 50,000 people were injured in golf cart accidents over a four-year period.

Every month in the United States, nearly 1,000 individuals are injured on golf carts (according to the University of Alabama at Birmingham). In fact, over a period of 16 years (from 1990 to 2006), golf cart annual injury rates increased 130 percent, with the most common cause of golf cart-related injury being falling or jumping from carts (found by Nationwide Children's Hospital's Center for Injury Research and Policy).

In nearby Peachtree City, golf carts are common among many residents who travel within their neighborhoods or short distances for errands. As residents of other cities are beginning to use golf carts for alternative travel, as well, we may see a rise in the number of golf cart accidents in Douglasville, Carrollton, and other parts of metro Atlanta. Whether you’re chasing a little white ball or simply traveling in your area, be careful at all times around golf carts. Let’s keep Georgia "under par" when it comes to instances of golf cart accidents.