Consumer safety information programs at IIHS

Zuby, David

Affiliations

¹Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, United States

Abstract

Since 1969, when the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) began publishing results of low-speed crash tests to highlight differences in vehicle bumpers, it has been a significant source of information about how the safety of different vehicle designs varies. Currently, IIHS maintains crashworthiness ratings covering five crash modes along with ratings of front crash prevention (FCP) systems and children’s booster seats, as well as annual updates of insurance loss reports from its affiliate, the Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI).

This report describes the experience with IIHS’s latest consumer information efforts and identifies the next areas of consumer information to come online. It presents information about the number of vehicle models and booster seats evaluated; their ratings assigned as well as media, consumer, and manufacturer response; and small overlap crashworthiness and FCP ratings. Research underpinning future rating programs addressing Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH) and advanced head lighting systems also is summarized.

Since launching its booster seat ratings, IIHS has evaluated 200 designs for their ability to adjust rear seat belt fit to booster-age children across a wide variety of rear seat belt configurations. The number of models rated Best Bet, indicating they will provide good belt fit in common passenger vehicles, has increased from a low of 10 in 2008 to 69 in 2014. Media coverage of these annual ratings announcements is estimated to average an audience of 88 million people in the United States. IIHS internet pages with booster ratings are among the most viewed, with an average of 102,800 page views monthly.

IIHS began rating vehicle front crashworthiness on the basis of a 64 km/h small overlap crash against a rigid barrier in 2012. Of the 118 currently rated 2015 models, 49 are good, 25 acceptable, 23 marginal, and 21 poor. Several models have been tested in two design iterations with improved performance in the second test, indicating automakers are able to design vehicles to better protect occupants in similar crashes. It is estimated that the media coverage across all small overlap ratings announcements has achieved 1.1 billion views. Surveys of automobile dealers indicate that good ratings in this test have led to increased sales, at least in the short term.

IIHS ratings of vehicle FCP systems include both warning and autobraking functions. The proportion of new models available with FCP of any kind has increased from 30 to 60 percent. The combined media coverage of three announcements featuring FCP ratings were viewed 212 million times. While not as strong as for crash test ratings, there was indication that these announcements positively affected sales of vehicles with these systems.

Large audiences for IIHS consumer information programs have prompted manufacturers of rated products to make changes in ways indicated by IIHS tests. Based on this experience with current programs, there is good reason to believe that IIHS ratings of LATCH and advanced head lighting systems can also improve vehicle safety.

Links

URL: http://www-esv.nhtsa.dot.gov/Proceedings/24/files/24ESV-000228.PDF

Cited Works (12)

Year	Entry
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