Nine Vehicle Models With Zero Fatality Rates, Study Finds

According to data from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), over 30,000 people were killed in car accidents on U.S. roads in 2012. While the number of traffic fatalities has been dropping over the last couple of years, this is a concerning figure that shows that road safety is still a very serious issue in the country. However, as vehicle safety technologies continue to advance, traffic safety is expected to further improve in the future. In fact, a new study shows that vehicles have become much safer lately, with the driver death rate dropping significantly over the past five years.

The IIHS analyzed car accident data in the U.S. for the period between 2009 and 2012, to determine which vehicle models have the lowest driver death rates, and found that nine late-model used vehicles have zero driver fatalities. According to the report released by IIHS, in 2012, there were 7,700 fewer driver fatalities compared to 1985, which is attributed to the improvements in vehicle safety tech.

The report says that in 2009, there were 48 driver deaths per million registered vehicles, for 2008 models, a number that dropped to 28 for 2011 models through 2012 calendar year, which is 42 percent drop in just three years.

“This is a huge improvement in just three years, even considering the economy’s influence,” says David Zuby, IIHS executive vice president and chief research officer, in the report. “We know from our vehicle ratings program that crash test performance has been getting steadily better. These latest death rates provide new confirmation that real-world outcomes are improving, too.”

Researchers found that the highest death rates were associated with minicars and smaller cars, with the 2011 Kia Rio model having 149 driver deaths per million registered vehicles, followed by the Nissan Versa and the Hyundai Accent, as the only other vehicles with a rate of over 100.

On the other end of the spectrum, a total of nine models that had no driver fatalities between 2009 and 2012 were found by the researchers. They include: the Audi A4 4WD luxury midsized car, Honda Odyssey minivan, Kia Sorrento 2WD midsized SUV, Lexus RX 350 4WD midsized luxury SUV, Mercedes-Benz GL-Class 4WD large luxury SUV, Subaru Legacy 4WD midsized car, Toyota Highlander hybrid 4WD midsized SUV, Toyota Sequoia 4WD large SUV, and the Volvo XC90 4WD midsized luxury SUV.

This list shows that the majority of vehicles with zero driver fatalities are SUVs, which is due to the fact that they are all equipped with advanced safety features, such as electronic stability control and lane departure warning systems. This could help policymakers determine which vehicle safety technologies are most effective in preventing driver fatalities, and recommend or even mandate automakers to install those features in their vehicles, in an effort to eliminate traffic deaths altogether.