Drivers are more likely to hit a deer on the road in West Virginia than in any other state and these collisions put a strain on state resources.

A vehicle in West Virginia has a one in forty five chance of colliding with a deer over the next twelve months. That's according to State Farm Insurance estimates.

The Institute for Highway Safety says each year deer-vehicle collisions in the country kill more than 150 people and cause cause 1.1 billion dollars in property damage.

But West Virgina Division of natural resource officials say they don't believe there's a population problem.

"I guess it's just a matter of opinion if they're over populated or not. I'm sure there's a lot of farmers in the district who think that we have too many deer. There are probably a lot of hunters that think we have about the right amount of deer or maybe not enough," said Jeff McCrady
Wildlife Biologist, WV DNR.

On Sunday the state legislature called on the Joint Committee of Government and Finance to come up with a way to cover these costly collisions. They're asking the state and insurance carriers to come together to create a solution.

But the DNR says there aren't any obvious solutions.
Warning signs have mixed results and drivers say deer whistles just don't work.

The committee is expected to issue a report in the 2009 legislative session.