Georgia Injury Law Blog
New automobiles that come with advanced safety technology have reduced the disparity between male and female motorists in the kind of injuries caused in car accidents.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recently released the results of a new report which finds that newer automobiles, particularly those of model years 2010 and later, do a much better job of protecting female motorists against personal injuries and reducing the disparity in injuries between female and male drivers.
These findings were published in a report titled Female Crash Fatality Risk Relative to Males With Similar Physical Impacts. Traditionally, there has been a discrepancy between male and female motorists in the outcomes of auto accidents. Women are almost 40 percent more likely to suffer injuries in car accidents.
According to the report, the newer the automobile, the lower the difference in auto accident related personal injuries between male and female motorists. The researchers focused on automobiles from the model year 2000 onwards, and found that the latest automobiles were much more likely to protect female motorists better. For example, the discrepancy in injuries dropped from 18 % to 6.3 % in the case of automobiles of model year between 2010 and 2020. In the case of automobiles between 2015 and 2020 model years, the discrepancy dropped to 2.9 %
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration states that there are several reasons for the drop in injuries involving female motorists. Primary among these factors has been the expanded use of auto safety technology in new cars. New automobiles, especially those from the 2010 model years are much more likely to come with advanced seatbelt systems, side airbags and other forms of auto technology that do a much better job of protecting female drivers in the event of a car accident. The kind of technology present in an automobile may be even more critical in the case of a female driver because women tend to drive smaller cars, and the size of these cars place them at a higher risk of serious or fatal injuries in an auto accident. For instance, women are much less likely to drive the kind of SUVs that men drive and that are more likely to protect against injuries in an accident.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration study found that dual air bags were especially useful in helping reduce the risk of personal injuries to female motorists. Female motorists are also much more likely to benefit from advanced seatbelt technology. When women used advanced seat belts, the researchers found that their estimated risk of fatal injury in an accident dropped to 6.1 %, relative to male motorists.
The Atlanta car crash attorneys at Katz Personal Injury Lawyers are dedicated to the representation of persons injured in car accidents in the metro Atlanta region and across Georgia. If you or a loved one have suffered injuries in a car accident, talk to a lawyer at our firm and determine if you have legal options to a claim for damages. You may be eligible for compensation that includes medical expenses, lost income and other types of damages. Talk to an attorney at our firm and discuss your case.