Overview
- Following the spring clock change, road authorities and hunting groups warn of a spike in wildlife collisions during dawn and dusk.
- The risk peaks in early mornings around 6 to 9 and at evening twilight near woods and fields, so drivers should slow down, dip high beams, honk if needed, and expect more animals to follow the first.
- Insurers and ADAC put scale in focus, citing about 300,000 such crashes a year, roughly 5% of all accidents, with a comprehensively insured car hitting wildlife about every two minutes.
- Two apps offer help: Wildwarner sends in-car audio alerts about danger spots across Germany, Austria and Switzerland and gives step-by-step crash guidance, and Tierfund-Kataster lets users report carcasses to improve hotspot mapping.
- Local reports mirror the trend, with more than 250 deer killed on roads last year in the Düsseldorf–Mettmann area and a recent A535 crash near Wülfrath in which two deer died.