Technology making car accidents easier to survive

Technology has made many aspects of our day-to-day lives easier, from keeping in touch with our-of-state relatives to paying the bills to learning in a classroom. But in addition to making life more convenient, technology has also made say-to-day life safer.

According to a recent study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, as the crash technology improves in new vehicles, the chances of being killed in a serious motor vehicle accident are dwindling.

The study found that a person’s chances of being killed in a car accident while driving a late-model car or light truck were reduced by more than a third over three years.

The study also revealed that nine car models had zero deaths per million registered vehicles, which is downright astonishing. When the institute checked the same statistics less than a decade ago, there weren’t any models that had driver death rates at zero.

Improved vehicle designs and safety features in modern-day vehicles are a big reason fewer fatalities are taking place. One of these safety features is electronic stability control, which reduces the risk of rollover crashes and has been widely adopted.

However, the institute did say that reductions in overall travel because of the economic recession also played a factor in the results. But even considering the economy’s impact on the data, the institute’s chief research officer said “a huge improvement” has been made.

While it is great news that more and more drivers are surviving serious car accidents, that isn’t to say that the survivors always walk away unscathed. In many cases, car accident victims sustain injuries that result in permanent disfigurement or disability.

We have seen first-hand how survivors of serious car accidents are grateful to be alive, yet discouraged by the long road to recovery that they face. We do everything we can to help get these clients the monetary compensation they desperately need as they forge ahead with a new lease on life.

Source: Associated Press, “Tech advances lower chance that driver will die in car crash,” Joan Lowy, Jan. 29, 2015