WEST ROCKPORT (Jan 8): Auto Crashes
THE TOPIC
DECEMBER 2006
The cost and crashworthiness of vehicles as well as drivers’ safety habits affect the cost of auto insurance. In 2005, 43,443 people died in motor vehicle crashes and an additional 2,699,000 people were injured. Out of concern for public safety and to help reduce the cost of crashes, insurers support safe driving initiatives. In 1969 the insurance industry created the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, an organization best known for its vehicle crashworthiness testing program. The industry has also fought to get auto manufacturers to make air bags standard equipment in vehicles and is a major supporter of antidrunk driving and seat-belt usage campaigns. Drivers have also contributed to the reduction in crash-related fatalities by demanding safer vehicles.
KEY FACTS
Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for people ages three to 33.
A motor vehicle death occurs on average every 12 minutes and an injury every 12 seconds. About 119 people died each day in motor vehicle crashes in 2005.
Since the first documented crash death in 1899, more than 30 million people worldwide have died in traffic crashes.
FATALITIES AND INJURIES
Overall: According to the U.S. Department of Transportation's Fatal Analysis Reporting System at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 43,443 people died in motor vehicle crashes in 2005, up 1.4 percent from 42,836 in 2004. The 2005 total was the highest level killed since 1990. NHTSA says that the 2005 increase resulted mainly from a 13.0 percent increase in the number of motorcyclist deaths, which have increased for eight years running (See Motorcycle Crashes paper).
By Vehicle Miles Traveled: The fatality rate — measured as deaths per 100 million vehicle miles traveled — was 1.47 in 2005, up from 1.45 in 2004, the first increase since 1986.
By Crash Type: In 2005 there were 6,159,189 police-reported motor vehicle traffic crashes, down 0.4 percent from 6,181,444 in 2004. Of total crashes, 1,816,000 only caused injuries and 4,304,000 only caused property damage. NHTSA estimates 10 million or more crashes go unreported every year.
Work-Related: In 2005 crashes involving vehicles on public roadways were the leading cause of work-related fatalities, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, accounting for almost a quarter of all fatal work injuries.
By Age Group: In 2005 older people (65 and older) made up 15 percent of all traffic fatalities, 14 percent of vehicle occupant fatalities and 20 percent of pedestrian fatalities. (See Older Drivers paper.) In 2004 there were 28 million older licensed drivers, up from 17 percent in 1994. The total number of drivers rose only 13 percent from 1994 to 2004.
In 2005 drivers between the ages of 15 and 20 accounted for 12.6 percent of all drivers in fatal crashes and for 16 percent of all drivers in police-reported crashes. In 2004 (latest available data) drivers in this age group accounted for 6.3 percent of all licensed drivers. To reduce high accident rates among young drivers, states are increasingly adopting graduated driver license programs, which allow young drivers to improve their skills and driving habits. (See Teen Driving paper).
By Driver Behavior
Speeding: In 2005, 13,113 lives were lost due to speed-related accidents. Speeding was a contributing factor in 30 percent of all fatal crashes. In 2005, 38 percent of 15- to 20-year old male drivers who were involved in fatal crashes were speeding at the time of the crash. NHTSA says that speed-related crashes cost Americans $40.4 billion each year. A crash is considered speed related when the driver is charged with a speed-related offense or a law enforcement officer indicates that exceeding the posted speed limit, driving too fast for conditions or racing was a contributing factor.
Drunk Driving: There is an alcohol-related traffic fatality every 31 minutes and an alcohol-related traffic injury every 2 minutes. In 2005, 16,885 people died in alcohol-related crashes, down 0.2 percent from 16,919 in 2004. Alcohol was involved in 39 percent of all crash fatalities in 2005. (See Drunk Driving paper.) Alcohol-related crashes are defined as those where someone involved, either a driver or a nonoccupant such as a pedestrian or bicyclist, had a traceable amount of alcohol in his or her blood.
Drunk Driving and Speeding: In 2005, 40 percent of intoxicated drivers (with a blood-alcohol content at or above 0.08, the definition of drunkenness) involved in fatal crashes were speeding, compared with 14 percent of sober drivers involved in fatal crashes.
Red Light Running: The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) says that more than 900 people a year die and nearly 2,000 are injured as a result of vehicles running red lights. About half of those deaths are pedestrians and occupants of other vehicles who are hit by red light runners.
Fatigue: NHTSA statistics show that at least 100,000 crashes and 1,500 deaths each year are the result of drivers falling asleep at the wheel. A 2002 poll, conducted by the National Sleep Foundation, found that 100 million drivers, close to half of American adult drivers, drive while drowsy and nearly two out of ten admitted to having fallen asleep at the wheel. New Jersey passed a law in 2003 that equates falling asleep at the wheel with reckless driving, and, if a driver falls asleep and kills someone in a crash, he or she can be charged with vehicular homicide and serve up to ten years in jail and pay fines. Although four states have considered similar legislation, New Jersey is the only state with such a law on the books.
By Vehicle
SUVs: The number of people killed in SUV rollover crashes fell 1.8 percent from 2,929 in 2004 to 2,877 in 2005, according to NHTSA, the first decline since 1992. In 2005 SUVs had the highest occupant fatality rate of any vehicle type in rollover crashes at 8.28 per 100,000 registered vehicles. This compares with 6.97 for pickup trucks, 6.80 for vans and 3.22 for passenger cars.
Motorcycles: In 2005, 4,553 motorcyclists died in crashes, marking the eighth consecutive year of increasing motorcycle deaths and a 13.0 percent increase from 4,028 in 2004. 2005 fatalities were the highest since 1986. In addition, motorcycle rider fatalities increased to 10.5 percent of all motor vehicle crash fatalities, compared with 5.0 percent in 1997. (See Motorcycle Crashes paper.) Between 1997 and 2005, motorcycle fatalities rose 115 percent. In 2004 (latest data available for registration statistics) motorcycles accounted for 2.4 percent of all registered motor vehicles and 0.3 percent of vehicle miles traveled. However, per vehicle mile traveled in 2004, motorcyclists were about 34 times more likely than passenger car occupants to die in a crash and about eight times more likely to be injured.
Large Trucks: According to NHTSA, 5,212 people died in crashes involving large trucks in 2005, compared with 5,235 in 2004, a decline of 0.4 percent. Although large trucks amounted to 3 percent of all registered vehicles in 2004 (latest year available for registration statistics), they accounted for 8 percent of all vehicles involved in fatal crashes in 2005. One out of eight traffic fatalities in 2005 resulted from a collision involving a large truck.
SAFETY
Crashworthiness: Crashworthiness, a term which refers to how well vehicles withstand different types of crashes, varies by category of vehicle as well as by make, model and year. Two groups conduct tests to determine crashworthiness—the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), which is an insurance-funded organization, and the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The IIHS conducts four types of tests on a large variety of vehicles: Low speed crash tests, rear crash protection tests, side impact crash tests and 40-mph frontal crash offset tests. NHTSA conducts two tests that are similar to the IIHS’s—frontal crash and side crash tests. NHTSA also publishes rollover safety ratings by make and model year, and tire ratings by brand. The IIHS vehicle ratings can be found on the Internet at http://www.highwaysafety.org; NHTSA test results can be found at http://www.safercar.gov.
Lives Saved by Safety Devices
Airbags: NHTSA says that airbags saved 2,741 lives in 2005. From 1987 to 2005, 19,659 lives were saved by air bags. Airbags, combined with lap/shoulder belts, are the most effective safety protection available for passenger vehicles. They are designed to inflate in moderate to severe frontal crashes. They are 14 percent effective in reducing fatalities when no seat-belt is used and 11 percent effective with a seat-belt. NHTSA estimates that by 2005, more than 160 million passenger vehicles were equipped with airbags, including 146 million with dual airbags.
Side airbags that protect the head, chest and abdomen reduce driver deaths by an estimated 37 percent, according to the IIHS. Side airbags without head protection, which protect only the chest and abdomen, are less effective but still reduce deaths by about 26 percent, according to a 2006 study. Head-protecting side airbags reduce driver deaths when cars are struck by SUVs and light trucks, an important issue because when cars are struck in the side by these higher riding vehicles, heads are more vulnerable.
Seat-Belts: Among passenger vehicle occupants over the age of four, seat-belts saved an estimated 15,632 lives in 2005. Seat-belts are effective in protecting occupants from ejection, one of the most injurious results of a crash, according to NHTSA. In fatal crashes in 2005, 75 percent of passenger vehicle occupants who were totally ejected from the vehicle were killed. Seat-belts are effective in preventing total ejections. Only 1 percent of occupants reported to have been using restraints were total ejected, compared with 30 percent of unrestrained occupants.
Child Safety Seats: NHTSA says that in 2005 the lives of an estimated 420 children under the age of five were saved by restraints — 382 of them by child safety seats alone. If all children under the age of five had been placed in child safety seats in 2005, another 198 lives could have been saved. From 1975 through 2005, NHTSA estimates that 7,896 lives were saved by restraints (child safety seats or adult seat-belts).
Motorcycle Helmets: Helmets saved 1,546 lives in 2005, according to NHTSA, and could have saved an additional 728 if all motorcyclists had worn helmets. Helmets are estimated to be 37 percent effective in preventing fatal injuries to motorcyclists.
Studies: A study released in April 2006 found that almost 80 percent of crashes and 65 percent of near-crashes involved some form of driver inattention within three seconds of the event. The 100-Car Naturalistic Driving Study, conducted by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), breaks new ground. (Earlier research found that driver inattention was responsible for 25 to 30 percent of crashes.) The new study found that the most common distraction is the use of cell phones, followed by drowsiness. However, cell-phone use is far less likely to be the cause of a crash or near-miss than other distractions, according to the study. For example, while reaching for a moving object such as a falling cup increased the risk of a crash or near-crash by 9 times, talking or listening on a hand-held cell phone only increased the risk by 1.3 times. The study tracked the behavior of the 241 drivers of 100 vehicles for more than one year. The drivers were involved in 82 crashes, 761 near crashes and 8,295 critical incidents. (See also Cell Phones and Driving.)
In December 2005 the NHTSA and the National Center for Statistics and Analysis released the results of their National Occupant Protection Use Survey (NOPUS), which found that in 2005, 6 percent of drivers used handheld cell phones, up from 5 percent in 2004. The survey also found that the jump was most noticeable among women (up to 8 percent from 6 percent in 2004) and young drivers ages 16 to 24 (up to 10 percent from 8 percent in 2004). The percentage of men using cell phones rose from 4 to 5 percent over the same period. Finally, the survey found that the number of drivers using headsets rose from 0.4 percent in 2004 to 0.8 percent in 2005. The NOPUS is a probability-based observational survey. Data on driver cell phone use were collected at random stop signs or stoplights only while vehicles were stopped and only during daylight hours. See also Cell Phones and Driving.
Many studies have shown that using hand-held cell phones while driving can constitute a hazardous distraction. However, the theory that hands-free sets are safer has been challenged by the findings of several studies. A study from researchers at the University of Utah, published in the summer 2006 issue of Human Factors concludes that talking on a cell phone while driving is as dangerous as driving drunk, even if the phone is a hands-free model. An earlier study by researchers at the university found that motorists who talked on hands-free cell phones were 18 percent slower in braking and took 17 percent longer to regain the speed they lost when they braked.
SAFETY ISSUES
Insurer Safety Discounts: Insurers offer discounts to encourage drivers to focus on safety. The majority of states mandate discounts for drivers who have completed approved driver improvement courses, mostly for motorists over the age of 55. Three states require insurers to give discounts, in some cases specifying the actual percentage, for cars equipped with air bags (although they are standard equipment on most cars now) and three require discounts for automatic seat-belts. Florida and New York require insurers to give discounts for cars with antilock brakes. Some insurers have nationwide discounts in place. State Farm, for example, offers as much as a 15 percent discount for drivers under age 25 who complete a safe driving program.
At least two insurers offer insurance discounts to owners of “hybrid” cars, which combine a battery–powered engine with a traditional gas engine. One offers a 10 percent discount on all auto insurance coverages except uninsured motorist and personal injury protection (PIP) for hybrid owners and bases the discount on the driver rather than on a safety device or safety training. According to the insurer, hybrid owners are less risky drivers than the average driver, based on demographics, driving records, credit data, marital status and driving patterns. The other insurer offers a 10 percent discount (5 percent in California) on all major coverages, including uninsured motorists and PIP.
Seat-Belt Use Laws: Seat-belt use laws are on the books in all states except New Hampshire. However, only 24 states and the District of Columbia have primary enforcement laws. The latest state to pass a primary seat- belt law was Mississippi, effective May 27, 2006. Primary seat-belt laws allow law enforcement officers to stop a car for noncompliance with seat-belt laws (See chart in following section). In the other states, which have secondary enforcement laws, drivers may only be stopped, and they and their passangers ticketed, if they have violated other traffic safety laws.
NHSTA says that states with primary enforcement laws have lower fatality rates. The agency compared the percentage of unrestrained passenger vehicle occupant fatalities and fatality rates between states that have primary safety- belt use laws and states that do not have them for 2000–2004. Besides having a smaller percentage of passenger vehicle occupant fatalities that were unrestrained, the fatality rates in primary enforcement states were much lower than for all other states. In primary enforcement states the passenger vehicle occupant fatality rates were 1.03 per 100 million vehicle miles traveled and 10.69 per 100,000 population. This compares to 1.21 and 13.13 (respectively) for all other states.
Seat-belt use in the United States stood at 81 percent in June 2006, compared with 82 percent in 2005, according to NHTSA. New incentives to increase seat-belt use were included in 2005’s Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Act. The Act makes $498 million available for distribution over four years to states that enact primary seat-belt laws or reach 85 percent belt use for two years.
source:
www.iii.org
