Let's End Auto-Safety Bias: Use Female Crash-Test Dummies!
- al: Consumer Reports
- destinatario: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Women are more likely to die and be seriously injured in a car crash than men. Yet regulators continue to use crash test dummies based on male bodies for almost all of its crash testing—despite the fact women represent about half of all U.S. drivers.
Although there have been countless safety advances over the years, our nation's auto safety rules are almost entirely designed to protect a 5-foot-9-inch, 170-pound male—the most common crash-test dummy. Yet studies have shown that women are injured differently in auto crashes due to variances in bone density, muscle mass, and other factors.
According to government data, a female driver or front passenger who is wearing her seat belt is approximately 17 percent more likely than a male to be killed when a crash takes place; and has 73 percent greater odds of being seriously injured.
We're expecting NHTSA to release a plan soon for future crash-test dummies, and we're calling for an end to the bias in outdated auto safety testing.
It's beyond time to ensure women's safety by requiring female crash test dummies. Join us in demanding the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration take action, and end the crash-test bias and outdated gender stereotypes about who is driving.
We urge NHTSA to better protect women's safety by requiring new, more representative female crash-test dummies that account for real-world injuries and fatalities. Women's safety is inherently at risk because of the disproportionate use of male crash-test dummies, and it is time to end this bias. NHTSA must use scientific evidence and available data, as well as any additional necessary research, to ensure that crash-test dummies better represent women—and ultimately, better protect women's safety on the road.
