Florida Among The Most Unsafe States In The Nation, According To A Recent Study

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Florida has many different age demographics but there is arguably one thing that they all share - they want to feel safe in their own homes and while enjoying themselves exploring all the Sunshine State has to offer. Whether we're talking about a family with small children, a young adult in her first apartment, or retirees, few people want to feel vulnerable or unsafe. Unfortunately, a recent study found that Florida was one of the least safe states in the nation. Let's take a look.

The Study And What It Measured: In October of 2024, the financial website WalletHub published what it felt were the safest (and least safe) states in the nation. To do this, it looked at metrics such as personal and residential safety, financial safety, road safety, workplace safety, and emergency preparedness.

How Did Florida Fare?: Florida did not make the top 40 of the 50 states. The "safest" states were Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts, and Utah.

The least "safe" states were Arkansas, Texas, Mississippi, and Louisiana. Florida was the fifth least safe state at 46th out of 50. Florida ranked least safe for emergency preparedness, followed by financial safety, workplace safety, road safety, and residential safety.

Additional Data: There is some additional data, which is arguably relevant to Florida's least safe metrics - emergency preparedness and financial safety.

A summer 2024 survey by Mark43, a public safety software provider, found that 81% of Florida residents surveyed admitted to not getting immediate help during extreme weather. And 79% were in favor of more funding to upgrade technology used by local public safety agencies.

Also in the summer of 2024, the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center identified Florida as ranking second in the nation for financial "scams" targeting older people.

The author is not affiliated with WalletHub.