Who provides Crash Test Ratings and Crash Test Scores?

One way to determine if a vehicle is safe for drivers and passengers is to conduct a “crash test.” This literally means that a representative model of the car is crashed under controlled conditions to observe the impact on passengers.

This process gives scientists insight into what happens during an automobile crash and how well cars are built to withstand these accidents.

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Who performs crash testing and crash test rating scores for vehicles sold in the USA?

There are two major groups in the United States which perform crash tests and rate the test vehicles according to their findings.

These two groups have a great deal of influence on safety regulations for vehicles and public opinion about safety features.

Insurance Institute for Highway Safety

The first group is the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, or IIHS (www.iihs.org). The Institute, at it is known, conducts crash tests on many different vehicles and awards some the “Top Safety Pick” award.

According to the Institute, in order to qualify for this list, a vehicle must be tested by high-speed crash tests from the front and side of the vehicle, checks of safety restraints to prevent head or neck injuries in a rear-end crash and a rollover test.

If a vehicle scores well in all four areas, it is picked as a “Top Safety Pick” for the year. The possible scores are good, acceptable, marginal or poor.

For 2011, the Institute chose cars in several categories based on size. Included in the “Top Safety Picks” were: Ford Fiesta (minicars); Honda Civic (small cars); Kia Optima (midsize); Toyota Avalon (large family); and Mercedes E Class (luxury).

There are also ratings for SUVs and trucks, as well as minivans.

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

The second major group which conducts auto safety tests is the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. As part of its governmental role, the NHTSA must continually test vehicles to see if they meet minimum safety standards.

Crash test ratings are given by NHTSA in the form of “stars,” with five stars being the highest rating given.

NHTSA bases its crash test ratings on several tests. Beginning in 2011, the NHTSA made the tests more rigorous in order to achieve more predictable results in terms of safety for passengers and drivers.

The NHTSA tests air bag deployment from various locations in the car, child safety restraints, tires, and new technologically-enhanced safety features.

The NHTSA tests about 55 vehicles per year, which they claim covers 80% of the consumer market. They also combine their ratings to achieve their “star” ratings, which means that a five-star rating stands for overall safety rather than one specific factor.

Further, the NHTSA now tests for new safety factors such as electronic stability control, lane change warning, and vehicle stop warning, which are designed to help drivers avoid collisions in the first place.

The NHTSA is also tasked with testing new cars as they come onto the market, through the New Car Assessment Program (NCAP).

By testing the cars prior to sale for the public, the NHTSA hopes to influence buying patterns by applying the “five-star” rating only to those cars which it deems are safe for the public. Many manufacturers will capitalize on a new car’s five-star rating in their initial advertising.

Who does most of the crash testing for vehicles sold in the USA?

Of the two major crash-test groups, the NHTSA does far more testing on many more types of vehicles. This agency is a governmentally-funded entity and it is not influenced by the automobile industry, so, theoretically at least, its results should be unbiased.

The IIHS is a group founded to benefit the insurance industry by giving it reliable information on cars which are safer to insure. Because this group is controlled by private interests, it is far more likely that the cars tested will be guided to some degree by the interests of insurers.

Further, the results can have a far greater impact on prices than the NHTSA’s testing, because insurance companies may use those results to justify higher premiums on certain cars.

Crash tests are typically conducted in laboratory settings with bare-bones models of the cars, sometimes modified to allow easier viewing of the interior.

Often, “crash dummies” are placed in various locations throughout the car, with or without safety restraints. These crash dummies are weighted and designed to mimic human beings of various sizes, and are specially equipped to allow scientists to study the damage inflicted on the human body.

Sensors and other testing devices help the crash testers to decipher exactly how and why human beings are injured in car crashes, and to test the reliability of the safety devices in preventing these injuries.

Crash tests also allow scientists to determine if some design structures are better than others for the safety of vehicles.

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4. What is a Top Safety Pick Rating (IIHS)?
5. Who is the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety?