Europe's deadliest countries for driving in 2025

Europe's deadliest countries for driving 2025

• Serbia tops the list as the most dangerous European country for driving, with 78 road deaths per million inhabitants in 2024.
• Romania and Bulgaria follow closely, with road fatality rates of 77 and 74 deaths per million inhabitants, respectively.
• Norway stands as Europe's safest driving nation with just 16 road deaths per million inhabitants.

Our new study has revealed that Serbia has the most dangerous roads for drivers in Europe, marking a shift from our previous 2024 analysis where Bulgaria held the top position.

Vignetteswitzerland.com analyzed the latest data from the European Transport Safety Council's (ETSC) Performance Index (PIN) 2025 report to compare road safety across European countries, ranking nations based on their 2024 road fatality figures.

Serbia leads the list with 78 road deaths per million inhabitants in 2024, making it the most dangerous country for drivers in Europe. This represents a significant deterioration from its third-place position in our previous study, where it recorded 76 deaths per million in 2023.

Romania ranks second with 77 deaths per million inhabitants, showing a slight improvement from its 2023 figure of 81 deaths per million but maintaining its position among Europe's most dangerous roads.

Bulgaria comes in third with 74 deaths per million inhabitants, dropping from the top spot it held in our 2024 study where it recorded 82 deaths per million—showing some improvement but still remaining well above the European average.

Greece and Croatia complete the top five most dangerous countries, with 64 and 62 road deaths per million inhabitants respectively. Notably, Croatia has shown improvement from its 2023 rate of 71 deaths per million, while Greece has risen in the rankings with 64 deaths per million compared to 60 in 2023.

Popular holiday destinations continue to feature prominently in the dangerous driving rankings, with Portugal (60 deaths per million), Italy (51 deaths per million), and Spain (36 deaths per million) all appearing in the upper tiers of the list—important considerations for the millions of tourists who drive in these countries annually.

At the opposite end of the spectrum, Norway maintains its position as Europe's safest driving nation with just 16 deaths per million inhabitants—64% below the European average and representing a further improvement from its already excellent 2023 figure of 20 deaths per million.

Sweden follows closely with 20 deaths per million inhabitants, while Malta rounds out the top three safest countries with 21 deaths per million inhabitants.

The study reveals a persistent geographical divide across Europe, with Balkan and Eastern European countries consistently showing higher fatality rates, while Nordic countries demonstrate sustained excellence in road safety standards.

Mattijs Wijnmalen

Executive Officer

"Our 2025 analysis shows both concerning trends and encouraging progress across European road safety. While Serbia's rise to the top of our dangerous driving index is alarming, we're pleased to see countries like Bulgaria and Romania showing gradual improvements from their figures last year.

The persistent clustering of Balkan and Eastern European countries at the top of our rankings highlights ongoing challenges with infrastructure investment, enforcement, and road safety culture. However, the improvements we're seeing in some countries prove that progress is possible with dedicated effort.

What remains particularly important for travelers is that popular holiday destinations like Croatia, Portugal, and Greece continue to feature in our top rankings. With millions of tourists driving in these countries each year, understanding these safety challenges is crucial for making informed travel decisions.

We hope this continued research encourages sustained investment in road safety infrastructure and stricter enforcement across all European nations, while helping drivers make safer choices when traveling abroad."

Ends

Mattijs Wijnmalen

Executive Officer

Mattijs Wijnmalen is the CEO of Vignetteswitzerland.com and a road safety researcher who has conducted several studies comparing driving risks across Europe. This is the third year in a row he has published this analysis, drawing on data from European transport agencies and national road safety reports.