New U.S. Study Reveals the Deadliest Cars on the Road
Following the U.S. Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) last year, automotive research firm iSeeCars has just released its own study of the most dangerous cars on the road—in other words, those with the highest fatal accident rate. Once again, two vehicle segments dominate the top of the list including small cars and sporty cars.
The team at iSeeCars analyzed fatality data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) Fatality Analysis Reporting System of model year 2018-2022 cars with car crashes that resulted in at least one occupant fatality. That’s how a ranking was put together.
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“Between advanced chassis design, driver assist technology, and an array of airbags surrounding the driver, today’s car models provide excellent occupant protection, but these safety features are being countered by distracted driving and higher rates of speed, leading to rising accident and death rates in recent years,” iSeeCars Executive Analyst Karl Brauer said.
Obviously, the human factor plays a much bigger role in accidents than the vehicles themselves. Anyhow, here are the top 10 cars with the highest fatal accident rates per billion vehicle miles:
- Hyundai Venue – 13.9
- Chevrolet Corvette – 13.6
- Mitsubishi Mirage (hatchback) – 13.6
- Porsche 911 – 13.2
- Honda CR-V Hybrid – 13.2
- Tesla Model Y – 10.6
- Mitsubishi Mirage (sedan) – 10.1
- Buick Encore GX – 9.8
- Kia Forte – 8.1
- Buick Envision – 8.0
“Most of these vehicles received excellent safety ratings, performing well in crash tests at the IIHS and NHTSA, so it’s not a vehicle design issue,” Brauer added. “The models on this list likely reflect a combination of driver behavior and driving conditions, leading to increased crashes and fatalities.”
The iSeeCars study shows that subcompact and compact cars are more often involved in deadly accidents (with a rate of 3.6) than the average vehicle on U.S. roads (2.8), which is largely attributable to their size and weight disadvantage.
Interestingly, too, Tesla has the highest fatal accident rate (5.6) of all car brands, followed by Kia (5.5), Buick (4.8), Dodge (4.4) and Hyundai (3.9). As with the model rankings, it’s possible these high fatal accident rates reflect driver behaviour as much or more than vehicle design.
“A focused, alert driver traveling at a legal or prudent speed, without being under the influence of drugs or alcohol, is the most likely to arrive safely regardless of the vehicle they’re driving,” Brauer noted.
