What You Need to Know About Car Safety Ratings

​With the help of technology and advancements on vehicle safety, cars nowadays have tons of safety features and gears in them. However, not all vehicles are made alike and therefore perform differently during a collision.

To determine a vehicle’s safety capability, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety conducts a series of tests and evaluations they call Car Safety Ratings.

​Collision or Crash Test
A crash test is one of the most important car safety ratings as it measures the crashworthiness as well as the safety of a vehicle’s standard and design. During the test, they simulate the impact to the front or sides of the vehicle replicating scenarios such as hitting a tree, pole or another vehicle.

Accident-Avoidance Rating
In testing a car’s ability to help in avoiding accidents, they assess factors like the breaking and emergency handling among others. Being able to avoid a crash is just as important as your protection from it.

Rollover Resistance Rating
A vehicle’s rollover rating determines whether it is at risk of rolling over in the event of a crash or severe steering maneuver. The stability and safety of a vehicle at-rest by measuring how top-heavy it is. So basically, if a vehicle tips during this test, the overall rating will drop slightly.

Roof Strength Test
Testing the roof strength of a vehicle helps reduce the risk of people inside the car from getting crushed by the roof during a rollover. Essentially, the roof has to withstand at least four times the total weight of the vehicle before it crashes by five inches.

Rear-Crash Protection
The IIHS evaluates the seats and head restraints by performing a dynamic rear-crash test to measure how well does it protect the occupants against whiplash. Its goal is to minimize the injuries, especially neck injuries, that passengers suffer during rear-impact collisions.

Rear Blind Spots
In this test, they measure how big the blind zone of a vehicle in the back. Larger vehicles like pickups and SUVs have larger blind spots compared to other vehicles. It means the driver can't see much behind it from looking at the rearview mirror.

Ensure your safety and protection by purchasing auto insurance and choose a car with a high safety rating.

At Oncken Insurance Agency, we do our best in making sure that our clients are well-protected with affordable and comprehensive policies. We make sure to go the extra mile to help you with your needs. To learn more about how we can help you, please contact our agency at (281) 256-8310 or Click Here to request a free quote.