San Francisco vs. Baltimore: from the Gridiron to the Streets

Football, blue helmet and red helmet
Every year, Superbowl Sunday is one of the most-watched events on television, and considering all of the interesting stories surrounding the “Big Game,” this year should be no different. From the much-talked-about sibling rivalry between the Harbaugh brothers to the alleged use of deer antlers, it should be quite a show.

With Sunday’s focus being on how these two cities compare on the gridiron, let’s see how they compare on streets.

According to data from Progressive Insurance, each city had a near-identical likelihood of filing a claim, but the likelihood of the type of claim filed in each city was different. Breaking down the numbers, these insurance claim types somewhat represent their teams’ performances when compared with one another.

Baltimore by the Numbers

Claims that involved only one vehicle were 65 percent more likely in Ravenstown, which shouldn’t be a surprise. During the regular season, the Ravens had more solo tackles that involved only one defender, totaling 852 compared with the 49ers’ 780.

The home to M&T Bank Stadium also had 27 percent more claims filed from incidents in intersections. Coincidentally, the Ravens’ quarterbacks had more interceptions than the 49ers’ (11 to San Francisco’s 8.)

San Francisco by the Numbers

Claims file on parked cars were 23 percent more likely in the Bay Area. This reflects the 49ers higher likelihood of sacking the quarterback while parked in the pocket when compared with the Ravens.

Claims for being rear-ended in San Francisco were 10 percent more likely, which makes sense since Aldon Smith, a 49ers linebacker, was in the top five players in the league with tackles for losses. Many of his victims probably didn’t see him coming.

City Similarities

Progressive’s findings also showed that the cities’ overall likelihood of insurance claims was almost identical. Getting rear-ended accounted for the highest percentage of claims and both cities had a relatively low likelihood of vandalism and theft, in comparison to other claims.

According to Allstate’s 2012 Annual best drivers report, both cities showed higher collision-claim rates than average, but Baltimore’s average of 1 claim per 5.3 years was 87.9 percent worse than the national average. San Francisco’s claims rate, on the other hand, was 59 percent worse than average.

Baltimore’s higher collision stats shouldn’t come as a shock to fans of the National Football League. The Ravens have been well-regarded as a hard-hitting, smash-mouth football team.

In fact, Ravens safety Ed Reed is known for hard hits and has gotten in some trouble over them in the past. Most recently, he was fined $55,000 in December for a hit he put on Giants receiver Victor Cruz.

So does play on the field translate into the public’s behavior on the road? Probably not, but with Superbowl Sunday just days away, it makes insurance claims just a little more fun to talk about.