Thematic report concerning safety in cars
Road traffic report 2012/01 eng
The Accident Investigation Board Norway (AIBN) has conducted a thematic investigation concerning all of the eight head-on collisions in 2008 and 2009 with three or more fatalities. Totally 46 persons were involved in the eight investigated accidents. 26 were killed, 10 were severely injured and 10 suffered only minor injuries. The further review of the survival aspects in the individual accidents will only refer to the killed and seriously injured. During these two years a total of 470 people were killed in road traffic accidents in Norway. The material covers 5.5% of the total number of fatalities in 2008 and 2009. The AIBN assumes that there will be similar injury mechanisms in other fatal accidents, i.e. with fewer than three fatalities. All vehicles involved were subject to a thorough technical investigation by the AIBN. The technical investigations focused on internal and external damage to the vehicle, seat belts, airbags and compartment deformations. During this work, emergency medicine expertise was applied. The investigation shows that proper seat belt use, the securing of items in the car, speed variation and point of impact in the collision, the car's protection against intrusion and available safety equipment is of great importance for survival. Overall, the investigation confirms that the use of seat belts (three-point seat belts) is the most important and most effective safety measure. However, the investigation also points to other issues/factors that are not as well-known among general road users. Combined, this constitutes an extensive material about safety in cars and provides increased knowledge about the factors/conditions which affect survival potential in a car accident.
Safety recommendation
Safety recommendation ROAD No. 2012/01T
A total of three of the 26 persons killed and four of the ten persons seriously injured in the eight accidents could have survived/suffered less serious injuries had they used seat belts. For another four persons, incorrect use of seat belts contributed to death/injury, two children in child seats did not have optimally tightened belts, and two persons who used belts died as a result of injuries inflicted by other persons in the car who were not secured.
The AIBN recommends that the Norwegian Public Roads Administration and the Police focus on correct use of seat belts and child seats in controls.
Safety recommendation ROAD No. 2012/02T
The high usage percentage in Norway shows that various measures and campaigns to increase seat belt use have had an effect. However the AIBN sees a further safety potential through this study. For four people, incorrect seat belt use contributed to death/injury, two children in child seats did not have optimally tightened belts, two persons who used seat belts were injured by other persons in the car who were not secured, and for two persons use of hip belts caused death/injury.
The AIBN recommends that the Norwegian Public Roads Administration, the Norwegian Council for Road Safety and the Police reinforce their information work in connection with correct use of seat belts and securing of children in cars, as well as the importance of three-point belts.
Safety recommendation ROAD No. 2012/03T
In four cases, the AIBN considers that securely fastened cargo to prevent displacement could have resulted in a different injury outcome. There are requirements stating that cargo must be secured correctly so that it poses no threat and causes no injury, but more detailed provisions or guidelines have not been established as regards securing cargo internally in passenger cars.
The AIBN recommends that the Norwegian Public Roads Administration reinforces its information work, e.g. through preparing own guidelines relating to securing of cargo internally in passenger cars.
Safety recommendation ROAD No. 2012/04T
In high-speed collisions involving cars with seat belts installed with force-limiter, the AIBN's investigations show that higher body weight increases the length of belt pulled off the reel. There is therefore a risk that a heavy person (heavier than the test weight of 75 kg as set in Appendix 9 to EU directive 2000/3EC and ECE 16 Annex 8) can result in the belt being pulled out so far that the person hits the interior of the car with great force even if the car's survival space is intact. In one of the accidents, the car driver could probably have survived if the safety belt had permitted less forward movement of the upper body.
The AIBN recommends that the Norwegian Public Roads Administration works to influence the European directive so that passive safety in cars is better safeguarded for people weighing more than the test weight of 75 kg.
Facts
| Location | 8 accidents in Norway |
| Occurrence date | 01.07.2009 |
| Accident type | Thematic investigation |
| Vehicle type | Lorry, Passenger car, Van, Truck and trailer |
| Type of Transportation | Freight transport, Passenger transport |
| Accident category | Annen ulykke |