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Fatal car crashes in Iowa, county by county

From 2020 through 2024, 1,770 people died in 1,598 crashes on Iowa roads. That is 10.9 deaths a year for every 100,000 residents, below the US rate of 12.1, and the 30th highest rate of the 50 states and DC.

Polk County had the most deaths (202). The road stretch with the most fatal crashes was I-80 (I-880) in Pottawattamie County (17). In 2024, 356 people were killed, 4% more than in 2020.

Source: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), 2020-2024 · checked October 2, 2026

1,770

people killed in crashes, 2020-2024

10.9

deaths a year per 100,000 residents, 30th highest of 51 (US 12.1)

133

pedestrians killed, 8% of deaths (US 18%)

21%

of fatal crashes were speeding-related (US 28%)

Death rate by county

Deaths a year per 100,000 residents, 2020-2024. Rural counties often rank highest: fewer people, faster roads and longer waits for an ambulance.

Adair County: 35 per 100,000 a year, 13 deathsAllamakee County: 18.3 per 100,000 a year, 13 deathsBenton County: 17.1 per 100,000 a year, 22 deathsBlack Hawk County: 8 per 100,000 a year, 53 deathsBoone County: 14.2 per 100,000 a year, 19 deathsBremer County: 9.5 per 100,000 a year, 12 deathsButler County: 15.5 per 100,000 a year, 11 deathsCarroll County: 13.7 per 100,000 a year, 14 deathsCass County: 20 per 100,000 a year, 13 deathsCedar County: 21.9 per 100,000 a year, 20 deathsCerro Gordo County: 10.4 per 100,000 a year, 22 deathsChickasaw County: 17.1 per 100,000 a year, 10 deathsClayton County: 20.1 per 100,000 a year, 17 deathsClinton County: 13 per 100,000 a year, 30 deathsCrawford County: 12.2 per 100,000 a year, 10 deathsDallas County: 6.9 per 100,000 a year, 40 deathsDes Moines County: 6.2 per 100,000 a year, 12 deathsDubuque County: 6.9 per 100,000 a year, 34 deathsFayette County: 14.6 per 100,000 a year, 14 deathsFremont County: 61.6 per 100,000 a year, 20 deathsGreene County: 30 per 100,000 a year, 13 deathsHamilton County: 16.2 per 100,000 a year, 12 deathsHardin County: 18.2 per 100,000 a year, 15 deathsHarrison County: 21.9 per 100,000 a year, 16 deathsHenry County: 13.4 per 100,000 a year, 13 deathsIowa County: 25.6 per 100,000 a year, 21 deathsJackson County: 15.5 per 100,000 a year, 15 deathsJasper County: 11.5 per 100,000 a year, 22 deathsJohnson County: 4.4 per 100,000 a year, 35 deathsJones County: 21.8 per 100,000 a year, 23 deathsKossuth County: 15.3 per 100,000 a year, 11 deathsLee County: 17.9 per 100,000 a year, 29 deathsLinn County: 7.3 per 100,000 a year, 85 deathsLouisa County: 24.5 per 100,000 a year, 13 deathsMadison County: 19.8 per 100,000 a year, 17 deathsMahaska County: 13.6 per 100,000 a year, 15 deathsMarion County: 14.1 per 100,000 a year, 24 deathsMarshall County: 12.9 per 100,000 a year, 26 deathsMills County: 19 per 100,000 a year, 14 deathsMuscatine County: 14.2 per 100,000 a year, 30 deathsO'Brien County: 14 per 100,000 a year, 10 deathsPlymouth County: 20.9 per 100,000 a year, 27 deathsPolk County: 7.8 per 100,000 a year, 202 deathsPottawattamie County: 12 per 100,000 a year, 56 deathsPoweshiek County: 14.1 per 100,000 a year, 13 deathsScott County: 10.7 per 100,000 a year, 94 deathsSioux County: 12.6 per 100,000 a year, 23 deathsStory County: 4.1 per 100,000 a year, 21 deathsWapello County: 11.2 per 100,000 a year, 20 deathsWarren County: 8.9 per 100,000 a year, 25 deathsWashington County: 15 per 100,000 a year, 17 deathsWebster County: 11.9 per 100,000 a year, 22 deathsWinneshiek County: 15.2 per 100,000 a year, 15 deathsWoodbury County: 8 per 100,000 a year, 43 deaths
under 1010-1515-2020-3030+ too few crashes

The most dangerous roads in Iowa

Fatal crashes by road within each county, 2020-2024. A long interstate shows up once per county it crosses.

#RoadWhereFatal crashesDeaths
1 I-80 I-880 Pottawattamie County, IA 17 17
2 US-69 SE 14Th St Polk County, IA 15 16
3 US-151 SR-13 Linn County, IA 12 16
4 I-80 Polk County, IA 12 14
5 I-380 SR-27 RAMP Linn County, IA 12 12
6 US-6 E Euclid Ave Polk County, IA 12 12
7 I-80 US6 Dallas County, IA 10 11
8 I-35 I-80 Polk County, IA 10 11
9 US-67 Great River Rd Scott County, IA 10 11
10 I-80 US 6/Hiawatha Pioneer Trl Cedar County, IA 9 11
11 US-61 Brady St Scott County, IA 9 10
12 US-75 Floyd Ave S Plymouth County, IA 9 9
13 I-235 I-35 RAMP Polk County, IA 9 9
14 I-80 US-6 Scott County, IA 8 12
15 US-218 SR-27 Lee County, IA 8 9

Deaths by year

Every Iowa county

54 counties with 10 or more fatal crashes in five years, by deaths. 45 more had fewer than 10 and are listed after the table.

CountyDeaths 2020-24Per 100K a yearPedestriansPopulation
Polk County 202 7.8 30 516,185
Scott County 94 10.7 18 175,601
Linn County 85 7.3 8 231,762
Pottawattamie County 56 12.0 10 93,529
Black Hawk County 53 8.0 4 132,348
Woodbury County 43 8.0 3 107,257
Dallas County 40 6.9 2 115,343
Johnson County 35 4.4 5 160,080
Dubuque County 34 6.9 3 99,242
Clinton County 30 13.0 1 46,015
Muscatine County 30 14.2 1 42,132
Lee County 29 17.9 4 32,376
Plymouth County 27 20.9 1 25,825
Marshall County 26 12.9 2 40,392
Warren County 25 8.9 1 56,343
Marion County 24 14.1 0 34,048
Jones County 23 21.8 0 21,116
Sioux County 23 12.6 2 36,554
Benton County 22 17.1 0 25,799
Cerro Gordo County 22 10.4 4 42,493
Jasper County 22 11.5 0 38,107
Webster County 22 11.9 1 36,909
Iowa County 21 25.6 0 16,423
Story County 21 4.1 2 102,498
Cedar County 20 21.9 1 18,231
Fremont County 20 61.6 2 6,494
Wapello County 20 11.2 1 35,681
Boone County 19 14.2 0 26,729
Clayton County 17 20.1 1 16,931
Madison County 17 19.8 2 17,161
Washington County 17 15.0 1 22,631
Harrison County 16 21.9 1 14,626
Hardin County 15 18.2 0 16,464
Jackson County 15 15.5 2 19,390
Mahaska County 15 13.6 0 22,034
Winneshiek County 15 15.2 1 19,723
Carroll County 14 13.7 0 20,407
Fayette County 14 14.6 1 19,152
Mills County 14 19.0 0 14,717
Adair County 13 35.0 0 7,431
Allamakee County 13 18.3 0 14,184
Cass County 13 20.0 0 13,024
Greene County 13 30.0 1 8,662
Henry County 13 13.4 0 19,361
Louisa County 13 24.5 0 10,630
Poweshiek County 13 14.1 0 18,454
Bremer County 12 9.5 0 25,328
Des Moines County 12 6.2 3 38,411
Hamilton County 12 16.2 0 14,856
Butler County 11 15.5 0 14,156
Kossuth County 11 15.3 0 14,408
Chickasaw County 10 17.1 2 11,719
Crawford County 10 12.2 0 16,378
O'Brien County 10 14.0 0 14,260

Fewer than 10 fatal crashes, 2020-2024: Adams County (4 deaths), Appanoose County (5 deaths), Audubon County (6 deaths), Buchanan County (10 deaths), Buena Vista County (10 deaths), Calhoun County (3 deaths), Cherokee County (8 deaths), Clarke County (10 deaths), Clay County (10 deaths), Davis County (8 deaths), Decatur County (10 deaths), Delaware County (10 deaths), Dickinson County (9 deaths), Emmet County (9 deaths), Floyd County (11 deaths), Franklin County (7 deaths), Grundy County (9 deaths), Guthrie County (7 deaths), Hancock County (7 deaths), Howard County (4 deaths), Humboldt County (11 deaths), Ida County (7 deaths), Jefferson County (5 deaths), Keokuk County (8 deaths), Lucas County (8 deaths), Lyon County (6 deaths), Mitchell County (9 deaths), Monona County (8 deaths), Monroe County (7 deaths), Montgomery County (10 deaths), Osceola County (6 deaths), Page County (9 deaths), Palo Alto County (4 deaths), Pocahontas County (2 deaths), Ringgold County (5 deaths), Sac County (9 deaths), Shelby County (6 deaths), Tama County (8 deaths), Taylor County (3 deaths), Union County (10 deaths), Van Buren County (4 deaths), Wayne County (6 deaths), Winnebago County (7 deaths), Worth County (9 deaths), Wright County (10 deaths).

What was involved

FactorIowaShareUS
Speeding was a factor
a driver coded by police as speeding, racing or too fast for conditions		 329 21% 28%
A driver had been drinking
police reported alcohol involvement for at least one driver		 392 25% 26%
A large truck was involved
a truck over 10,000 lbs		 317 20% 13%
Hit-and-run
a driver left the scene		 21 1% 7%
Pedestrians killed
share of all deaths		 133 8% 18%
Motorcyclists killed
share of all deaths		 309 17% 15%
Bicyclists killed
share of all deaths		 34 2% 3%
Teens (15-19) killed
share of all deaths		 140 8% 7%

After a crash in Iowa

  1. Get the crash report

    Statewide copies come from Iowa Department of Transportation, Bureau of Enforcement, Audits, & Records (Motor Vehicle Division), cost $4 for a copy of the officer's report (kept even if no report exists); $4 for a limited-information accident report; $5.50 per record for driver records.

    How to get an Iowa crash report

  2. Know your deadline

    Iowa gives you two years to file a personal injury lawsuit (Iowa Code § 614.1(2)). If a city, county or state vehicle was involved: A claim against the State must be made in writing and filed with the director of the department of management within two years after the claim accrued; suits against cities and counties must be commenced within two years (Iowa Code 670.5).

    Work out your date

  3. Who pays

    Iowa is an at-fault state: the driver who caused the crash, through their liability insurance, pays for the injuries and damage.

    Iowa car accident laws

  4. If you were partly at fault

    If you were partly at fault, your damages are reduced by your percentage of fault, but you recover nothing if your fault is greater than the combined fault of the defendants (more than 50%).

    The rule and its statute

  5. The other driver’s minimum coverage

    The legal minimum liability coverage in Iowa is $20,000 per injured person, $40,000 per crash and $15,000 for property (20/40/15).

    Every state’s minimums

Check your deadline and a rough claim range

A filing date and a rough value range for Iowa. Both take under a minute.

Check my deadline Estimate my claim