It's not just your imagination.

The roads are scary in Los Angeles and up and down the Golden State. Potholes are an epidemic in L.A. And a-hole drivers are legion. But personal finance site WalletHub says there's one more thing you should worry about here:

Uninsured or under-insured motorists. The site ranked California has one of the worst in the nation when it comes to the risk you take on every time you start your engine.

California ended up as one of the four worst states for “risky” drivers, in fact, according to WalletHub.

The site looked at required insurance coverage types and amounts as well as the percentage of uninsured drivers in each state to come up with its ranking:

WalletHub ranked the 50 states and the District of Columbia in terms of several risk factors. We first analyzed the minimum coverage requirements for the mandatory forms of auto insurance in each state. Next, we examined their percentages of uninsured drivers. Finally, we summed together the scores from each category to determine an overall “riskiness” ranking for our sample.

The Golden State tied Mississippi for fourth-to-last place. Florida was ranked worst, followed by Oklahoma and New Mexico.

Credit: WalletHub

Credit: WalletHub

Perhaps surprisingly, especially for folks who see those in the country illegally behind every societal ill, California's rate of uninsured motorists wasn't the worst.

It's about 15 percent, meaning that about 1.5 out of 10 drivers is without insurance out there. Compare that to 26 percent, or more than 1 in 4, for Oklahoma.

But our coverage levels are pretty sad, at $15,000 for death and injury for one, $30,000 for death and injury to more than one, and $5,000 for damage to property damage.

The safest state, Maine, requires  $50,000 for one, $100,000 for all, and $25,000 for property.

So, uh, be safe out there.

Send feedback and tips to the author. Follow Dennis Romero on Twitter at @dennisjromero. Follow L.A. Weekly News on Twitter at @laweeklynews.

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