Today’s cars are becoming more and more advanced and Modern vehicles are now packed with cutting-edge technology and sophisticated features, particularly in terms of safety features — and that’s a good thing! It was only 48 years ago, in 1976 when Ontario became the first province to pass a law requiring occupants to wear seatbelts. Since then, automotive technology has exploded, and safety features have kept pace, with manufacturers continuing to refine existing features and introducing innovative new systems. But are all these fancy features worth the hype — and the cost? As collision repair specialists, we see the results of accidents every day, and we know firsthand how some of these features can completely alter the results of a collision for the vehicle and its occupants. Today we’ll take a look at these gadgets in detail, and we’ll also explore the statistics and trends that demonstrate just how effective they are in terms of keeping people safer, and even saving lives!

Modern Vehicle Safety Features

Active Headrests

Aside from comfort, many of us likely don’t give much thought to our headrests, but they do play an important role in protecting drivers and passengers. First patented in the U.S. in 1921, they were still considered optional until the 1960s – mostly installed in luxury vehicles for extra comfort. However, manufacturer research soon made it clear that headrests, also called head restraint systems, were surprisingly effective in preventing cervical spine and other injuries. By 1969, they were a required element in all modern vehicles, and vehicle manufacturers today continue to invest in research and development to make active headrests even more effective.

There are two types of headrest systems:

• Mechanical: based on levers and springs that are activated by the occupants’ back pressure, and

• Pyrotechnic: Sensors detect an impact and trigger gas generators to activate the headrest.

As for how they work, the concept is simple: when a collision is imminent, the headrests move forward automatically to decrease the distance between the head and rest, thereby reducing the degree of movement to lessen the chance of whiplash and spinal damage.

How effective is It?

According to recent data, it is well worth a few minutes of your time to properly adjust your headrest. Whiplash and similar injuries are painful and costly – to the tune of about $4 billion annually in insurance payouts for recovery assistance. Rear-end collisions account for 80% of those injuries. However, a 2022 Canadian Safety Council study found that just 14% of Canadian drivers (mostly women) had their headrests properly adjusted. For a whopping 53% of drivers, the headrest was not well enough adjusted to offer any injury protection from a rear-end collision. The study further stated that if drivers could simply ensure that the headrest is level with the top of the head and 5 to 10 cm from the back of the head, the number of neck injuries could be reduced by an estimated 40%!

Blind Spot Detection

We’ve all been there … you signal your intention to change lanes, shoulder check, and start to veer over – only to hear the blast of a horn as a driver in your blind spot makes their presence known. Thankfully many of today’s auto safety features include blind spot warning or detection systems. The system relies on sensors (camera, ultrasonic or radar) that monitor your vehicle’s perimeter for objects lurking in those spots you simply cannot see. Switch on your signal and, if a vehicle is detected, you’ll be warned by some combination of lights, audio alerts and/or a vibrating seat or steering wheel that this is NOT the right time to change lanes. Similarly, lane departure and lane assist systems in modern vehicles rely on forward-facing cameras to trigger warning lights and/or vibrations when drivers are about to leave their lane without having activated any signal.

How effective is It?

According to a National Law Review article, it is estimated that more than 800,000 blind spot accidents occur each year in the US. Like most of the vehicle safety features described in this article, BSD systems are intended as a secondary line of defence for drivers. The technology may not activate in time and may not be reliable in detecting fast-moving vehicles and motorcycles. Even so, an Insurance Institute for Highway Safety study highlighted:

• A 23% decrease in lane-change collisions with injuries
• A 7% decrease in claim rates for damage to other vehicles
• A 9% decrease in claim rates for injuries to people in other vehicles

An auto safety survey conducted by Consumer Reports asked 47,000 vehicle owners to rate their satisfaction with Blind Spot Warning (BSW) and Blind Spot Assist (BSA) systems, and consumer response was overwhelmingly positive, with two-thirds of drivers stating it had helped to prevent a crash. In particular, owners of larger vehicles (which tend to have more pronounced blind spots) had good things to say about BSD, as did owners of new vehicles, indicating that the technology is improving over time.

Although the above-noted references are US-based, they serve to demonstrate that there are definite benefits to this technology.

Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB)

This technology monitors the surroundings of a moving vehicle and automatically applies the brakes if a crash is imminent. It functions as a last resort to reduce speed in the absence of driver reaction. It can help to prevent a crash altogether, or at the very least to lessen the force of an impact for a better outcome. This vehicle safety feature is most effective when your vehicle is about to rear-end another vehicle. Some (typically more expensive) systems can also detect pedestrians, cyclists and other obstacles. Further, the technology can be less effective in conditions like snow, rain, or even certain angles of sunlight; however, performance and reliability are anticipated to improve over time.

In the US, 20 vehicle manufacturers have committed to installing this as standard equipment on new light vehicles made between Sept 2025 and Aug 2026. The European Union has already adopted similar requirements, mandating AEB in heavy vehicles as of July 2022 and light vehicles as of July 2024. Canada is engaged in a pre-regulatory process, and mandatory compliance dates may soon be announced based on evolving technology and monitoring of how often existing systems are being used.

How effective is It?

In 2022, Driving.ca cited the results of two US studies that demonstrate the value and efficiency of automatic emergency braking.

In the first study, data was analyzed from 12 million crashes in over 13 states and found that emergency braking works well in all conditions, including poor weather and bad lighting. In cases where automatic braking was used in combination with forward collision alert, front-on-rear crashes were reduced by 49%, and crashes causing injury were reduced by 53%.

The second study looked specifically at pickups, which represent one-fifth of passenger vehicles on the road and are statistically more dangerous than cars, and identified a 43% reduction in rear crash rates and a 42% drop in rear-end injuries.

This LinkedIn article posted by Data Analytics Visionaries states that the adoption of this technology is notably on the rise by both passenger and commercial vehicle manufacturers in Canada.

Adaptive Lighting

As the name suggests, adaptive headlights can automatically adjust their direction and intensity to track curves, turns, hills or potential road hazards. The headlight mechanism and steering system are interconnected through links. The lights can then react to the steering wheel and shadow the movements of the front wheels. Most of them only move side-to-side, but some versions are also capable of vertical movement.

These systems can automatically adjust the brightness of the lights based on road conditions and the presence of nearby vehicles. This helps make pedestrians and cyclists more visible while also lighting up empty areas of the road. Another feature, auto-dimming headlights are designed to prevent other drivers from being blinded by bright lights from oncoming vehicles.

Canada legalized adaptive headlights in 2018, but they are primarily found in luxury or high-end vehicles. As a result, many everyday drivers still don’t have access to this advanced lighting technology.

How effective is It?

Since adaptive headlights have only been legal here since March 2018, Canadian data on the efficiency of these next-level headlights is lacking. However, this auto safety feature has earned the seal of approval of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), a highly respected US nonprofit dedicated to improving road safety.

An IIHS study revealed that curve-adaptive HID headlights allowed drivers to “spot a hard-to-see object on a dark curvy road about 1/3 of a second earlier than conventional lights.” Further studies have shown that insurance claim rates were generally lower for equipped vehicles. An earlier study of 2010 Mazda 3 models with adaptive headlights found that nighttime collision and property damage claim rates were 15% lower.

Given the available statistics, it’s reasonable to expect that the advantages of adaptive lighting will become clearer as more new vehicles are equipped with this technology.

Electronic Stability Control (ESC)

This crash avoidance system has been mandatory on all modern cars, SUVs, pickups, minivans, heavy trucks and buses since 2012, making it a requirement for over 12 years. It helps drivers maintain control of their vehicles when swerving to avoid obstacles.

When the ESC’s sensors and computer detect that your steering does not match the direction of your vehicle, it works within milliseconds, measuring yaw (the rotation of a vehicle around its vertical axis), wheel speed and steering angle. From there, it is capable of automatically braking one or more wheels for short periods of time and/or reducing engine power – whatever is needed to stabilize your vehicle and keep it moving in the intended direction. Impressive!

How effective is It?

ESC has been around since 1995, so there has been plenty of time to analyze the impact of this remarkable technology. The system is very efficient, and studies over the years have revealed some impressive auto safety statistics arising from its use:

• It has the potential to reduce fatalities from single-vehicle car crashes by 30-to-50 percent and those involving SUVs by 50-to-70 percent.
• fatalities due to rollover crashes may be reduced by 70-to-90 percent, regardless of vehicle type.
• In 2006*, Transport Canada estimated that fitting all passenger vehicles with ESC could result in about 225 fewer deaths and 755 fewer people seriously injured on Canadian roads annually.

*These facts are reproduced from older sources, but it is safe to assume that the results of similar studies today would be even more impressive.

The View from the Driver’s Seat

A 2022 article by The Canadian Safety Council perhaps sums it up best: “Safety Features in Cars are Top Priority for Canadian Drivers.” A poll cited within that article revealed that 67 percent of drivers feel safer when driving with these technologies installed. The survey highlighted that two of the most appreciated systems by Canadian drivers are blind spot warnings and rearview cameras.

As far as the effect of these advancements on vehicle sales in general, 71% of all drivers said that auto safety features would be a top consideration in their next car purchase, and 61% of those drivers stated they would not consider investing in a vehicle without their preferred vehicle safety features installed.

We’ve explored five of the most common vehicle safety systems in detail, but the innovations don’t stop there. The world of automotive safety is constantly evolving, featuring an impressive array of features and innovations such as shatter-resistant glass, backup cameras, automatic crash notifications, anti-lock brakes, and pedestrian detection, the list continues to grow from there!

As experts in collision repair, we see two sides to this story. As car owners ourselves, we are grateful for the existence of these amazing safety technologies that minimize accidents, and most importantly, injuries and fatalities. From a repair perspective, it keeps things interesting! We must constantly learn and put in the effort to stay updated on all these advancements. However, we are more than willing to do this work to earn your trust and maintain our status as highly regarded collision repair specialists.

After all, it’s what we love to do, and it’s what we do best!