IIHS Will Begin Rating The Safety Of Cargo Vans, Work Trucks, And Other Commercial Vehicles This Spring

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, or IIHS, is best-known for its independent evaluations and rankings of new vehicles and their crashworthiness, but it does a lot more than that. It also encompasses the Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI), which studies real-world crash data to determine sticking points for safety on U.S. roads. And last week, the IIHS announced that it will release its first safety ratings for cargo vans, work trucks, and other commercial vehicles this spring. 

Unlike crash test ratings, the first commercial vehicle results will focus on whether the vehicles are equipped with things like airbags and advanced seatbelts, which they refer to as occupant protection ratings. Evaluation of the vehicle's crash avoidance capabilities will be published later. In a press release, Vice President of Vehicle Research at the IIS, David Kidd, said, "Cargo vans and big pickups are only the beginning. In the coming years, we expect to expand our evaluations to include box trucks and potentially even tractor-trailers."

Government safety standards that apply to passenger cars don't always apply to commercial vehicles, and 16% of all roadway fatalities in the U.S. in 2023 involved heavy or medium-duty trucks and light vans. The IIHS aims to reduce those numbers by issuing safety ratings for these vehicles.

In 2011, the IIHS conducted its first test of the rear underride guard on semi-truck trailers (the metal bumper-like structures that hang down on the back of a trailer), which are designed to prevent passenger vehicles from sliding under the trailer in the event of a crash. At the time, most of the underride guards were too weak and easily broke, causing the car to impact the trailer about where the driver's head sits. Now, though, almost every new trailer passes the IIHS test.

Businesses often buy commercial vehicles in fleets, so the IIHS hopes that by issuing safety ratings for these vehicles, it will result in a relatively rapid improvement in their alarming crash statistics. They noted that a company focusing on fleet safety can have much more impact than a single consumer. Kidd also said, "Advancing commercial vehicle safety is a cornerstone of IIHS-HLDI's plan to reduce crash deaths in the U.S. Through independent evaluation and evidence-based guidance, we aim to help businesses and communities make safer choices."