Research Shows Crash Prevention Systems Drastically Reduce Rear-End Smashes

Us petrolheads generally don’t like the idea of electronic interference in the cars we drive, whether it be traction control systems spoiling our fun, or various bings and bongs giving us warnings about supposed dangers. However, some of this technology does make a good deal of sense, particularly front collision prevention systems.

According to research from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety in the United States, automatic braking systems reduce rear-end crashes by about 40 per cent when compared with vehicles without any such assistance. Even a warning system on its own is able to cut such accidents by a significant 23 per cent. It’s also important to note that if an accident isn’t avoided, auto braking systems have been found to reduce injuries sustained in rear-end crashes. The study looked at Volvo’s ‘City Safety’ system, discovering that it resulted in a 47 per cent reduction in injuries sustained. Not bad.

Overall, the Institute reckons that there would have been 700,000 fewer police-reported rear-end accidents in 2013 if all cars on the road had an auto braking system, saving millions of dollars in crash damaging and preventing hundreds of thousands of potentially painful injuries.

So, even if you’re not a fan of electronic assistance in cars, maybe this is the sort you can get behind…

Source: Insurance Institute for Highway Safety via Autoblog