Iihs driver death rates by make and model

These changes continued to contribute to later declines as well, though other factors such as the weak economy also appear to have played a role. There were 7, fewer driver deaths in alone than there would have been had vehicles remained the same since The latest death rates by make and model confirm the rapid pace of improvement. Among models, there were 28 driver deaths per million registered vehicle years through the calendar year, down from 48 for models through see " Death rates by model: SUV drivers are among least likely to be killed ," June 9, A registered vehicle year is one vehicle registered for one year.

These latest death rates provide new confirmation that real-world outcomes are improving, too. Although the numbers reflect models, data from earlier model-year vehicles as far back as are included if the vehicles weren't substantially redesigned before Including older, equivalent vehicles increases the exposure and thus the accuracy of the results.

To be included, a vehicle must have had at least , registered vehicle years of exposure during or at least 20 deaths. IIHS has published death rates by make and model periodically since , at first for cars only and later for all passenger vehicles see Status Report special issue: death rates, Nov. The rates include only driver deaths because the presence of passengers is unknown.

Fatality counts are taken from the federal Fatality Analysis Reporting System. Registration data are from R. The rates are adjusted for driver age and gender, but not all the demographic factors that can influence results are accounted for. Four years ago when IIHS released death rates for models, researchers found that they needed to include an adjustment for calendar year in order to account for the effects of the recession. For this reason, researchers developed another model that included the calendar year adjustment, as well as adjustments for vehicle age and vehicle density at the garaging location, in addition to driver age and gender.

That more-complex model worked well at the time, but when researchers used it to calculate the death rates, the results were unstable. Since the U. The list of models with the lowest death rates illustrates just how much vehicles have improved. Eight years ago, there were no models with driver death rates of zero see Status Report special issue: driver death rates , April 19, As the average size profile of automobiles driven on U.

IIHS crunched the numbers as part of its analysis , conducted roughly every three years, of driver death rates using data from the federal Fatality Analysis Reporting System and registrations from IHS Markit. Researchers evaluated model-year vehicles or earlier carryover models, with fatalities that occurred from to They found that 15 of the 20 models with the highest death rates were small and minicar, while almost half of the 20 vehicles with the lowest death rates were luxury SUVs.

Large SUVs posted the lowest overall death rate of any segment with 15 fatalities per million registered vehicle years, while minicar had the highest, at The single worst performer? That would be the Ford Fiesta four-door, which returned an overall death rate of fatalities per million registered vehicle years, compared to the average of 36 for all models. Ford has since discontinued the Fiesta in the U.

Not all small cars fared poorly in the analysis, however. The Volkswagen Golf and Nissan Leaf electric hatchback posted death rates of 0 and 5 per million registered vehicle years, and the same rate at 10 billion miles traveled, a new measurement for IIHS. The overall death rate for small cars was 61 per million vehicle years and 45 per 10 billion miles traveled. Switching to the lowest death rates, luxury SUVs notched nine of the 20 top spots, with two luxury midsize cars — the Lexus CT h hybrid and the Mercedes-Benz C-Class sedan — also making appearances.

Seven models had death rates of zero. Overall, the average death rate for all models increased to 36, from 30 for models and 28 for models. That corresponds with rising traffic fatalities during the four-year span covered by the study. The latest rates are based on fatalities that occurred from to for vehicles from the model year, as well as earlier models with the same designs and features. The numbers represent the estimated risks for models, but the data include models from as far back as if the vehicles have not been substantially redesigned over the intervening period.

Including these older, equivalent vehicles makes the sample size larger and therefore increases the reliability of the results. To be included, a vehicle must have had at least , registered vehicle years of exposure from to or at least 20 deaths. For more information, go to iihs. The Highway Loss Data Institute HLDI shares and supports this mission through scientific studies of insurance data representing the human and economic losses resulting from the ownership and operation of different types of vehicles and by publishing insurance loss results by vehicle make and model.

Both organizations are wholly supported by auto insurers. Attachment List. Models with the highest and lowest rates of driver deaths. Tags Automotive safety data analysis automotive news. Related Links Read online and view the full list.

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