A recent study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) looked at the risk of serious injury and death in male versus female occupants involved in car accidents. Unsurprisingly, women have a higher risk of dying or being seriously injured in an accident.
The most obvious factor affecting this is less muscle mass in women to offer protection. A couple of not-so-obvious factors that this specific study revealed:
- Women typically sit closer to the steering wheel, which can result in more significant head/leg trauma and/or trauma caused by airbag deployment.
- Women often drive smaller vehicles that don’t offer as much protection when compared to larger vehicles.
The IIHS website (https://www.iihs.org/) is a great resource for determining the safety ratings of vehicles. Be sure to visit it before buying your next car. It may save your life!