Crashes with kangaroos and other wildlife are rising across Australia, and a 21% spike in claims reveals exactly when and where you're most at risk

Every winter, millions of Australians drive on regional roads in the dark, often unaware of the danger of those roads. Not because of potholes or bad weather, but because of what’s lurking at the side of the road. It’s not unusual to come across kangaroos, wombats, wallabies and other native animals on Australian roads, turning an everyday drive into a truly life-threatening one.

And the numbers are getting worse.

A crisis hiding in plain sight
NRMA Insurance claims data shows that over 15,000 animal collision claims were lodged in 2025, a 21% increase on 2024. That figure isn't a one-off spike. It’s part of a steep and ongoing rise in road deaths in Australia.


A peer-reviewed study by Rowden, Steinhardt and Sheehan, published in Accident Analysis & Prevention, titled “Road Crashes Involving Animals in Australia” revealed that thousands of animal-vehicle collisions occur on Australian roads each year, with significant vehicle damage, human injury and animal mortality, predominantly involving kangaroos and wallabies, which comprised 44.8% of the serious crashes studied. The latest NRMA data confirms this, with kangaroos alone accounting for 84% of all animal collision claims in 2025, followed by wallabies, wombats, deer and foxes.

When and where the risk is the highest
The data reveals a clear picture. Animal crashes are heavily concentrated during low-light hours, especially from early evening through to midnight. This is directly related to animal behavior. Kangaroos are most active at dusk and dawn, when they move to eat roadside vegetation and driver visibility is at its worst.

Seasonal patterns matter too. The risk is more pronounced in the autumn and winter months, with a sharp peak in June and July when the decline in daylight hours results in an increase in wildlife activity during commuting hours.

According to NRMA Insurance's 2025 Wildlife Collision Hotspots data, the Capital Region is the highest-risk area in New South Wales, accounting for around a quarter of all collisions, with Dubbo standing out as the top suburb. In Victoria, the Hume region leads the state, driven by heavy traffic along the Melbourne–Sydney corridor, with Wodonga topping the list.

It's not simply an Australian pattern. In the U.S., the same mix of darkness, seasonal animal movement and rural roads fuels an estimated 2.1 million deer-vehicle collisions a year, killing about 440 people and causing 59,000 injuries, according to the researchers at the University of Washington, at a cost of more than $10 billion a year. The threat is worldwide.

Swerve or brake? The answer might surprise you
Instinct is to swerve when a kangaroo jumps into your headlights. Research suggests you should be very careful before you do it.

A direct hit is dangerous, but swerving can be just as dangerous, or worse, trading an animal strike for a rollover or a hit with a tree, barrier or oncoming vehicle. According to The Conversation, motorcyclists are more likely to receive severe injuries and serious animal crashes, a pattern observed internationally.

Road safety researchers always advise slowing down early, before you see the animal, especially during known high-risk hours and in wildlife zones. Slowing down gives you time to react and control. Braking in a straight line is much safer than taking corners at speed.

Warning signs aren't working
You've seen the yellow diamond signs. Most drivers have, and most have stopped responding to them. Research has shown that permanent wildlife warning signs are of little benefit, as drivers become too accustomed to them to recognize them as real warnings.

University of Washington researchers Cunningham and Prugh published a 2022 study in Current Biology analyzing over 1 million deer-vehicle collisions across 23 US states. They found that collision risk was 14 times higher two hours after sunset than before. The biggest variable, whether you are driving through regional Victoria or rural Wyoming, is darkness. And no roadside sign will change that. Alertness will.

What to do if you hit an animal
If you pull over and get out of your car on a dark country road, you are in the way of oncoming cars. Your best bet, rather than trying to move or help the animal yourself, is to get completely off the road, turn on your hazards, and call a wildlife rescue service to report where you saw the animal.

Animal collisions are rising, predictable, and occur mainly within a narrow window of time and place. Knowing when and where that window opens is the most useful thing a driver can carry.