Kinder, gentler SUVs kill fewer people
Design changes in SUVs have radically reduced the death rate among occupants of the other vehicle when there's a crash.
This post comes from Des Toups at partner site CarInsurance.com.
SUVs aren't killing nearly as many people as they once did.
In data released Wednesday, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety said changes to the design of high-riding pickups and sport-utilities, combined with improvements such as side airbags in cars, had lowered the death rate in the vehicles they struck, by nearly two-thirds in some cases.
That's a big change from the beginning of the decade -- the peak of the sport-utility craze -- when insurers such as Farmers and State Farm raised rates for drivers of SUVs, citing the outsized damage that the vehicles caused. In 2000-01, occupants in cars and minivans hit by sport-utilities died twice as often as those hit by other cars and minivans.
Today, the IIHS says, as the occupant of a midsize car or van, you're as safe being hit by an SUV as you are by another car. Slightly safer, in fact.
The IIHS notes that physics haven't changed: That is, a light car hit by a heavy SUV still won't fare very well. But for vehicles in the same weight classes, it's a fair fight. Post continues after video.
Warp speed
In regulatory terms, automakers and safety officials addressed the mismatch between cars and trucks at warp speed. After meetings in 2003 to discuss design changes to better align the impact-absorbing structures of light trucks with the cars they hit, improvement came quickly. Among 2004 models, 54% of SUVs and pickups met the new front-end requirements, the IIHS said, and among 2007 models, 81% did.
"By working together, the automakers got life-saving changes done quickly," says Joe Nolan, co-author of the new study. "The new designs have made a big difference on the road."
That's reflected in insurance rates, where reduced liability risk has made small sport-utilities such as the Ford Escape and Hyundai Tucson among the cheapest vehicles of any kind to insure.
More on CarInsurance.com and MSN Money:
I would think the data would need to factor in the decreased number of SUV's on the road. With the huge increase in fuel prices the last three years people have to drive less, drive a small car, or sell their SUV altogether.
With the huge increases in food prices, people just don't have the money to spend on gas, so they stay home.
Listen to yourselves...."Kinder, gentler SUVs kill fewer people" Killing fewer people. Who comes up with these captions anyway? Shouldn't it say some thing like "Kinder, gentler SUV's with better safety rating for the safe and sound rides the the drive wants"....
How long have you, the writer been writing, anyway? It is pitiful.....
Saying a SUV kills people is like saying a Big Rig kills people. I hate to inform you weenies, but its the DRIVER of said Vehicle. There are Drivers and there are NFD's. My favorite saying is "Welcome to Florida, training grounds for NASCAR"
You so-called reporters need to do some research on what you write about. Especially if you are a car insurance site...
RELATED ARTICLES
DATA PROVIDERS
Copyright © 2013 Microsoft. All rights reserved.
Fundamental company data and historical chart data provided by Morningstar Inc. Real-time index quotes and delayed quotes supplied by Morningstar Inc. Quotes delayed by up to 15 minutes, except where indicated otherwise. Fund summary, fund performance and dividend data provided by Morningstar Inc. Analyst recommendations provided by Zacks Investment Research. StockScouter data provided by Verus Analytics. IPO data provided by Hoover's Inc. Index membership data provided by Morningstar Inc.
ABOUT SMART SPENDING
Smart Spending brings you the best money-saving tips from MSN Money and the rest of the Web. Join the conversation on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.
Editor Bev O'Shea lives and works in the foothills of the Appalachians. A former copy editor for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and the Orlando Sentinel, she joined MSN Money in 2007. She's a fan of sunsets, college football and free shipping, among other things.
Having worked as a writer, reporter and editor for more than 25 years, Editor Julie Tilsner is the sort of person who can't help but correct grammar in Facebook postings and on billboards. She's written for BusinessWeek, the Los Angeles Times, Parenting, Redbook, AOL and others. She lives in Los Angeles County with her family and loves to drink wine and practice yoga, although not generally at the same time.
A writer for MSN Money since January 2007, Donna Freedman won regional and national prizes during an 18-year newspaper career and earned a college degree in midlife without taking out student loans. She also writes about smart money tactics for magazines and on her own site, Surviving and Thriving.
Mitch Lipka has been warning people about scams and shining light on questionable business practices for more than 20 years. Mitch, the consumer columnist for The Boston Globe, has also been a reporter and editor at The Philadelphia Inquirer, Consumer Reports, South Florida Sun-Sentinel and AOL. He won the 2010 New York Press Club award for best consumer reporting online and was honored in 2011 for his reporting on child product safety.
Marilyn Lewis is an award-winning writer with a passion for getting readers clear, straight information that helps them stay out of financial trouble. A former reporter for The San Jose Mercury News, she works from her home in Port Townsend, Wash. Contact her at MarilynLewis@Outlook.com.
LATEST BLOG POSTS
Those shackled with student loan debt are increasingly being targeted by scams and shady companies promising relief.
VIDEO ON MSN MONEY
TOOLS
Best rates on savingsFind the highest rates on savings accounts, CDs and money market accounts.
- Are you saving enough for retirement?
- Find a great credit card
- Car insurance premiums by model
