Trucks And SUVs Far More Likely To Cause A New Haven Pedestrian Accident

In a recent study conducted by the Insurance Institute For Highway Safety (IIHS) it was found that trucks and SUVs were more likely to cause an injury in an accident with a pedestrian then those driving sedans.  While the study didn’t look specifically at New Haven pedestrian accidents it can be reasonably concluded that this same finding would hold true in the Elm City as a general rule.

Let’s look at the study and drill down a bit more on the numbers.  The level of incident and injury is roughly the same when vehicles big and small are involved in crashes at low and high speeds.  For example, a sedan traveling at low speed was found to injure a pedestrian only mildly and the same held true for a driver of an SUV who hit a pedestrian at a low speed.  The same results were found when accidents happened at high speeds and an SUV or a sedan hit a pedestrian, it often resulted in serious or fatal injuries.  The difference reflected in the study is when these two types of vehicles struck a pedestrian at a medium speed.  This is when disparities were found.

The designs of trucks or SUVs are such that pedestrians are often in direct contact with the “leading edge” of the vehicle which results in a greater injury.  At intermediate speeds these vehicles will contact a pedestrian and cause serious injury.  In most cases, when a pedestrian is struck by a truck or SUV she/he is struck by the bumper, headlights, or grille of the vehicle.  At intermediate speeds these incidents have been shown in the study to cause dramatic impacts and cause serious, if not life-threatening, injuries.  The same was not shown for incidents with cars/sedans.  Vehicles that are lower to the ground and have a less intimidating leading edge were found to not cause as serious or impactful incidents as their truck/SUV counterparts.

Auto manufacturers have spent the better part of the last two decades making changes to the body type and style of trucks and SUVs, but the study finds that these efforts have had minimal to no impact on the safety or lack of safety as it relates to pedestrian incidents.  So, the IIHS concludes that there is more work to be done to insure the safety of pedestrians when coming into contact with trucks or SUVs.

In the Elm City, avoiding a New Haven pedestrian accident, whether with a sedan, truck or SUV is necessary to keep yourself and your loved ones safe.  If you’re not sure if it is safe to cross or enter the road, do so slowly and cautiously so you can avoid the results of this study all together.

If you do find yourself injured from an accident with a truck or SUV you may call our office and one of our experienced attorneys will work with you to review your case and protect your long-term interests.