Safety technologies could reduce car accident risk

Many drivers in Florida have noticed an increasing amount of automated safety features offered on cars when they go to buy a new vehicle. Some might wonder how much value they have. While fully self-driving cars are still some time into the future, automated features aim to help drivers and make the roads safer. According to one study released by GM, these advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) live up to their promise of reducing traffic accidents. The report says that some types of backing-out crashes were reduced by 81% due to certain ADAS technologies.

The report also said that when advanced emergency braking was installed along with forward collision alerts, rear-end car collisions were reduced by 46%. With forward collision alerts alone, rear-end crashes were reduced by 21%. Other results also indicated the success of multiple automated systems. The 81% reduction in backing crashes was achieved through the inclusion of automatic reverse braking, rear cross-traffic alerts, rear vision cameras and parking assist. With parking assist alone, crashes were reduced by 38%, and a rear vision camera cut down accidents by 21% when backing up. Other autonomous features were also effective. Lane change alerts and blind zone warnings reduced collisions by 26% when changing lanes.

Researchers measured the effectiveness of the technologies by reviewing crash data from 10 states. With VIN information provided by GM for models from 2013 to 2017, the researchers were able to identify which cars had the technologies installed. They were also able to compare those numbers with all cars sold to determine the likelihood of a crash.

While safety features hold potential for cutting down on car accidents, most crashes are caused by people’s distracted or negligent driving. A personal injury lawyer might help people injured in a motor vehicle collision to pursue compensation for their damages.