Road deaths hit 200 as speeding epidemic grips Qld
One person has been killed on Queensland roads every 29 hours this year, with road deaths in 2025 climbing to 200 – a devastating milestone.
To put this in perspective, Queensland was on track for a total of below 200 fatalities in 2025 if we had stayed on the pre-Covid downward trend.
RACQ’s General Manager of Advocacy, Josh Cooney, said speeding continued to be the leading factor in road trauma and called for urgent action to curb this alarming surge in tragedies.
“We cannot accept the status quo while this road safety crisis worsens. With four months left of 2025 and the ‘silly season’ still ahead, Queensland is on course for its deadliest year since 2009,” he said.
“Right now, one person dies on our roads almost every day, and speeding remains the leading factor in fatal crashes, contributing to an average of 79 deaths every year.”
RACQ’s 2025 Annual Road Safety Survey revealed just how prevalent speeding was, with three quarters of Queensland drivers (76.5%) admitting to the deadly behaviour.
Young drivers, especially young men between the ages of 18 and 24, are among the most reckless – with 28% believing it was safe to drive more than 11km/h over the limit.
“Speeding is dangerous because it not only increases the risk of a crash happening, but also the severity of the impact if one does happen,” Mr Cooney said.
“We must urgently implement a number of key reforms to change driver behaviour including more visible police on our roads, more point-to-point cameras, and tougher penalties for repeat offenders such as impounding vehicles.
“Unless attitudes shift, the number of lives lost each year will only get worse and right now we’re staring down the barrel of above 300 deaths again in 2025.”
Since 2017, self-reported speeding had risen 5.7%, and almost 65.1% of drivers said speeding happened because they were simply not paying attention. On top of this, almost half of drivers (46.1%) believed they would not get caught.
“The reason why people speed is because they aren’t focussing or believe they won’t get caught, this shows just how far we’ve drifted from a safe driving culture in Queensland,” Mr Cooney said.
“To reverse this trend, awareness isn’t enough – we need action. That’s why RACQ launched our ‘Get Serious on Road Safety’ campaign this year and we will continue to advocate for meaningful action until Queensland’s road safety crisis is addressed.”
For more information visit Get Serious on Road Safety | RACQ.Related topics
Things to note
The information in this article has been prepared for general information purposes only and is not intended as legal advice or specific advice to any particular person. Any advice contained in the document is general advice, not intended as legal advice or professional advice and does not take into account any person’s particular circumstances. Before acting on anything based on this advice you should consider its appropriateness to you, having regard to your objectives and needs.
Insurance Products (excluding Travel Insurance) are issued by RACQ Insurance Limited ABN 50 009 704 152 (RACQI) and arranged by its agent, RACQ Distribution Services Pty Ltd (RDS) ABN 35 116 361 650, AFSL 567130 and RDS' authorised representatives (including RACQ Operations Pty Ltd ABN 80 009 663 414, AR No. 234978 (RACQO). Conditions, limits and exclusions apply. RDS and RACQO are in the RACQ group of companies. One of the companies in the RACQ group of companies has a minority shareholding in RACQI.
RDS and RACQO have not taken your personal objectives, circumstances or needs into account when preparing advice regarding insurance products and you will need to consider whether the advice is appropriate for you. Read the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and any applicable Supplementary PDS before making a purchase decision on this product. You can also access our Target Market Determinations on this website. RDS receives a commission from RACQI for the policies it arranges. RACQO receives fees paid for services it provides to RDS. Further details about remuneration are available on request prior to purchasing.
Banking and loan products issued by Members Banking Group Limited ABN 83 087 651 054 AFSL/Australian credit licence 241195 trading as RACQ Bank. Terms, conditions, fees, charges and lending policies apply. This is general advice only and may not be right for you. This information does not take your personal objectives, circumstances or needs into account. Read the disclosure documents for your selected product or service, including the Financial Services Guide and the Terms and Conditions, and consider if appropriate for you before deciding.
Except for RACQ Bank, any RACQ entity referred to on this page is not an authorised deposit-taking institution for the purposes of the Banking Act 1959 (Cth). That entity’s obligations do not represent deposits or other liabilities of RACQ Bank. RACQ Bank does not guarantee or otherwise provide assurance in respect of the obligations of that entity, unless noted otherwise.
RACQ Bank subscribes to the Customer Owned Banking Code of Practice which establishes higher standards than the law requires. The Code reflects modern consumer expectations and developments in approaches to issues such as consumer vulnerability, guarantors, and supporting customers through financial hardship. Please read our Customer Owned Banking Code of Practice page for more information.
RACQ Operations Pty Ltd (ABN 80 009 663 414 AR 000234978) and Members Travel Group Pty Ltd (ABN 45 144 538 803 AR 000432492) are acting as an Authorised Representative of the issuer of the insurance, Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance Co., Ltd. (ABN 80 000 438 291 AFSL 246 548). Any advice set out above is general in nature only, and does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. Before purchasing any travel products, please consider the RACQ Travel Insurance Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and the Target Market Determinations (TMDs) that apply to these products. Whilst the PDS outlines the Terms and Conditions of these products, the TMDs outline the intended class of customers that comprise the target market for these travel products. This will allow you to consider which products best suit your objectives, financial situation and needs and consider the products appropriateness to your personal circumstances. TMDs also outline matters involving the distribution and the review of these products. The PDS, Supplementary PDS and TMDs for each travel product can be found here.