The key facts

  • Monday accounted for 15.3% of all accidents over two years — more than any other day of the week
  • Recalculated per day, about 44 cases were recorded on weekends versus roughly 42 on weekdays — almost 5% more often
  • The calmest day was Thursday (13.6% of cases); 'unlucky' days differ across regions

Monday leads in total numbers, but not in frequency

Monday turned out to be the most 'unlucky' day of the week for Russians in terms of the total number of accidents: it accounted for 15.3% of all claims over the past two years. These data from a study by the insurance company Rosgosstrakh are cited by Gazeta.Ru. The company compared injury statistics over two years to determine on which days Russians most often run into trouble.

What the per-day recalculation showed

The picture changes if one takes into account not only the total number of claims but also the number of calendar days. On average, about 44 cases per day were recorded on Saturdays and Sundays, compared with roughly 42 on weekdays. Thus, the frequency of claims on weekends turned out to be almost 5% higher than on weekdays. The company's analysts suggest that what matters is that in their free time people do more household chores, go for walks, travel and spend time with their families.

The difference between the days is small

After Monday, the share of claims is led by Saturday (14.8%) and Sunday (14.7%), followed by Friday (14.2%), Tuesday and Wednesday (13.7% each). The calmest day turned out to be Thursday — 13.6% of cases. The spread between the days, therefore, is only about one and a half percentage points.

Regional differences and the insurer's comment

'Unlucky' days differ from region to region. In a sample of the five regions where injuries occurred most often, Sunday led in the Kirov Region and Udmurtia, Monday in Bashkortostan and Tatarstan, and Saturday in Moscow. Olga Kuptsova, Deputy Director of the Methodology and Underwriting Department for Personal Insurance at Rosgosstrakh, noted that, according to statistics, accidents are distributed across the week almost evenly, and the difference between the days is not large enough to consider any of them inherently safe: 'Caution is needed both on Monday on the way to work and on Saturday during a walk or household chores.'