Minnesota drivers are far from perfect, but they are considered the best in the nation for the second straight year, according to a study out Friday from Carinsurancecomparison.com.

The Gopher state was followed in the rankings by Ohio, Vermont, Iowa and Nebraska.

The website looked at the number of fatalities reported in crashes in which at least some of the drivers involved had been speeding, drunk or driving carelessly. It also examined fatal crashes in which an offender disobeyed a traffic signal, drove without wearing a seat belt or drove with an invalid license. And finally it looked at the fatality rate in general for every 100 million motor vehicle miles traveled.

The website ranked each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia in all five categories using data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. A composite score was given to each state. The lower the score, the higher the risks for motorists.

Minnesota's lowest marks came in the categories of fatal crashes from speeding and "Failure to Obey" traffic laws. The state's best mark was its low fatality rate per every 100 million vehicle miles traveled and the number of deaths that resulted from careless driving, the website's study found.

This year, 360 people had died on Minnesota roads as of Thursday, according to the Department of Public Safety's Office of Traffic Safety. In 2014, there were 361 for the year.

Bad drivers can be found anywhere, but, based on the new study, you're more likely to find them in Montana, deemed to have the nation's worst drivers. Tied for second were South Carolina and New Mexico. Those states were followed by Texas, Louisiana, Arizona, Hawaii, North Dakota, Delaware and Mississippi.

To see the study, go to tinyurl.com/cfyxp56.

Tim Harlow • 612-673-7768