Study links car color and accident risks

Your odds of getting into an accident may all come back to the color of car that you buy. A study found that specific colors saw higher or lower accident rates, indicating that drivers may be unknowingly putting themselves at risk when they pick out their next vehicle.

The study pegged white as the safest car color. It stands out against the pavement and in low light. When you compare white cars to black cars, for instance, you will find that the odds that a white car will get into a wreck are 12 percent lower. That statistic holds true all around the clock, not just at night.

That said, white is only the second-most popular color for new cars. Silver, which is notably less safe, is the most popular.

If you don’t want to take a risk with black, gray, silver or a related color, but you also don’t want a white car, it may be worth considering beige, yellow or cream. Those colors all showed high safety rankings, though none were quite as high as white.

A black car carries the greatest risk, followed by a gray car, which has an 11 percent greater risk of getting in an accident than a white car. Next came the ever-popular silver cars, at 10 percent, and then blue cars at 7 percent. Blue was actually tied with red, which also came in at 7 percent. That is a bit surprising since red is such a bright color, but it does not appear to keep people safe.

No matter what color car you own, if you get hurt in an accident caused by another driver, you may be able to seek financial compensation.