Almost 630 drivers involved in fatal collisions have avoided prison in the past five years, despite being found criminally responsible.
Around ten drivers each month are handed community orders, suspended sentences or fines for causing crashes which result in deaths.
Figures obtained from the Ministry of Justice show just 25 per cent of motorists go to prison for causing death by careless driving, The Mail on Sunday reports.
The data shows 1,731 drivers were sentenced for causing fatal crashes between 2020 and 2024, with 1,102 of these jailed and 417 handed suspended sentences.
Two avoided an immediate jail term, while seven were granted absolute or conditional discharges. Some 16 drivers were issued with fines and 187 sentenced to community service.
By contrast, around 95 per cent of those convicted of the more serious charge of causing death by dangerous driving are sent to prison. The government recently changed legislation so that those convicted of the charge could face a life sentence.
Campaigners Glenn and Rebecca Youens from St Helens, Merseyside, have lobbied for tougher sentences after their four-year-old daughter Violet-Grace was killed by a driver in a stolen car travelling at 80mph in a 20mph zone in 2017.
The driver was given a nine-year jail term but was released on licence halfway through his sentence.
Mr Youens said: "If you are driving unacceptably it is as dangerous as somebody who has gone out with a knife or a gun. If you kill somebody with a car in those circumstances it should be the equivalent of taking somebody's life with a weapon."
His wife added: "Why should these killers get a second chance at life? My girl didn't even get a first chance."
A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: "While independent judges decide sentences, we are making sure the courts have the sentencing powers to ensure punishments fit the severity of the crime."
