Are Car Fires on the Rise or Just More Visible?

Aug 6, 2025 6:00 PM

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You’ve probably seen the reports and social posts about car fires, and it might feel like they’re a new epidemic.

The truth is, vehicle fires have generally declined in recent years. NFPA data show that the total number of vehicle fires dropped 4–5 percent from 2020 to 2021. In 2021 alone, there were about 208,500 vehicle fires—about 15 percent of all fires. They caused around 680 deaths and 1,500 injuries and led to roughly $2.1 billion in damages Darley.

Here’s a quick look at trends over time:

In 2005, vehicle fires numbered in the hundreds of thousands. By 2010, they dipped. In 2019 and 2022, auto fires hovered around the 200,000 mark as well Facebook.
Fires involving highway vehicles made up the bulk—about 83 percent of vehicle fires and 86 percent of vehicle fire deaths in 2021, Facebook+13Darley+13NFPA+13.

So what’s feeding the feeling of a spike? A few factors:

First, having more people post and share vivid photos or multiple news reports of a single incident can skew public perception. If the same fire shows up in five posts, it feels like five separate incidents. That’s the negativity bias at work.

Second, higher vehicle age and heat in Texas summers contribute. As cars age, their mechanical systems wear, increasing the risk of failure and sometimes fire.

What about electric vehicles?

Early data (mostly anecdotal) suggests EVs catch fire less often than gas-powered cars, but they can be more dangerous when they do because of the lithium batteries Darley. Still, far fewer EVs are on the road, and long-term data are limited, so solid conclusions are not yet available.

In short, although individual stories may capture attention, the numbers indicate a downward trend overall. If flames seem more visible lately, it’s more about perception and reporting, rather than a sharp rise in actual incidents.