Tax-Filing Day May Be a Road Hazard

Add another to the list of reasons not to like tax-filing days — a higher risk of fatal traffic accidents. That’s the finding of a new study that looked at 30 years of U.S. traffic data. Researchers analyzed deaths that occurred on tax day (usually April 15) and the days 1 week before and after tax day. In all, there were 6,783 traffic-related deaths on those days. The average was 226 on tax days and 213 on the other days. That’s a difference of about 6%. Researchers say they can’t explain it. Maybe it’s the result of stress, or stress-related drinking. Maybe people are rushing to get to a post office. But since the first years studied, electronic filing has become common. About 3 out of 4 personal tax returns are filed that way now. And electronic filing has not reduced traffic deaths on tax days, researchers said.