A case study was conducted into 123 crashes involving 144 fatally injured lap-shoulder belted front seat occupants. The crashes occurred throughout the United States in 1985-86 and involved 97 driver and 47 right front passenger deaths in new vehicles. A judgement was made by consensus of a safety panel on the potential for saving the victim's life by the addition of safety technology. Supplemental air bags provided the greatest potential for improving the life-saving effectiveness of current lap-shoulder belts. Overall, air bags may have prevented 12% of the belted occupant fatalities and 27% of the deaths in frontal crashes. The benefit of supplemental air bags was greater for the right front passenger, in part, because more females and occupants over 60 years of age are in that seating position. A majority (68%) of the belted fatalities were judged unpreventable by reasonable restraint or vehicle modifications. This level is indicative of the extreme severity of many of the fatal crashes. Using published levels of belt effectiveness, 50% of all fatalities may not be preventable by the use of lap-shoulder belts, supplemental air bags, and practicable changes in crashworthiness systems. The study addressed only the potential benefit of supplemental-restraint components and air bags and did not consider possible adverse effects which might occur in real-world crashes.
Abstract