Isn't it more important the number of accidents AVOIDED becasue the holder had an IMC rating? Any sort of instrument training is a good thing. It teaches far more accurate flying as well as flight by sole reference to the instruments.
Now I don't think that a 15 hr IMC course is enough for someone to tackle hard IMC head on, unless they've got a death wish, however I do believe that it is a licence to learn. You start of with marginal VFR, progress to transiting cloud layers, then you start bashing about the frontal stuff, and in my opinion someone who takes this attitude to instrument flight will become a far better instrument pilot than say an fATPL holder who got the ticket, then a year later lets it lapse [becasue they're working as an FI teaching VFR PPL's and never use it....which is what I've seen a lot of people do].
IFR flight is not expensive, in the UK we have a very "free" system that lets a pilot on a jolly switch from VFR to IFR without formality during the flight. I often fly IFR and file an IFR flight plan using the IMC rating, doesn't normally cost me any more than a VFR flight. I would suggest that inexperienced IMC holders go up with a more experienced person and practice......
Cheers
EA
