Restaurant neighbors most accident prone

SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 7 (UPI) -- Drivers who live within 1 mile of a restaurant are 30 percent more likely to have a car accident than one who lives further away, an analysis said Wednesday.

Churches are the least risky neighbor of all. People who live within 1 mile of a church are 10 percent less likely to have an accident resulting in a property damage claim than if they lived one more than one mile from the church, the study by San Francisco-based Quality Planning Corp. said.

The company examined more than 15 million policyholders and 2 million claims, mapping the proximity of vehicle-owners' addresses to various types of businesses.

As far as higher crash likelihoods, following restaurants were grocery stores, schools, banks and car dealers.

On the safer side, after churches came a racetrack or amusement park, hotels, national parks and local parks.

The company couldn't explain why accident claim frequency was higher and lower in the various areas, but noted insurance companies already use zip codes to determine rates.