The objective of this study was to evaluate the real-world effectiveness of RUPDs in India using accident data collected from field investigations under Road Accident Sampling System – India (RASSI) initiative. The analysis of field data indicates that RUPDs show a higher effectiveness in reducing fatalities for belted car drivers even at relatively higher impact speeds but are not effective for unbelted car drivers. While RUPD fitment rates and compliance to dimensional requirements were found to be poor, the crashes involving trucks with RUPDs were examined for deformation extent and height of initial contact on passenger cars, relative impact speeds and impact energies. Post-impact condition of RUPDs and calculation of impact energies indicate that the impact energy experienced by bent or sheared RUPDs is more than six times higher than when the RUPD remained intact. A multipronged approach involving compliance to seatbelt laws in passenger cars and RUPD fitment in heavy trucks, improvements in heavy truck RUPD design, and implementation of accident avoidance and mitigation technologies in passenger cars, through a data-driven approach aided by on-scene scientific crash investigations of real-world crashes, can help improve the effectiveness of RUPDs in reducing passenger car fatalities and serious injuries.