You’ve probably seen the television commercials that depict the impact of an auto accident with crash test dummies sitting in for real drivers and passengers. These commercials have a tremendous power to show just how damaging a car crash can be.
The use of crash test dummies goes far beyond an impactful car commercial, in fact these crash test dummies are used in real life testing to help auto manufacturers design and build safer cars.
However, a recent University of Virginia paper found that crash test dummies are often not representative of the actual body of female drivers and passengers specifically. In fact the build of a female crash test dummy is a five foot tall woman who weighs just 110 lbs. The build of these crash test dummies is far off from the actual average build of a female in the United States who is more than 60 lbs. heavier and a full four inches taller than the dummies being used.
The difference in body type between the test dummies and the average American woman, researchers surmise, is the reason why women die or get seriously injured 73% more of the time than men do. Researchers believe that if crash test dummies were built more like the average woman with similar proportions and weight distribution (which differs significantly from men) then this staggering gap between the survival rate of men and women in car crashes would be greatly diminished.
Another hard to believe fact is that up until 2003 there weren’t female crash test dummies being used in crash tests at all. Most researchers and testers were male and it never occurred to them to test automobiles on drivers and passengers who didn’t look like them.
If you or a loved one is injured in a Connecticut auto accident contact our office immediately and our attorneys will assist you in making sure you have all the information you need to get your situation addressed of immediately.
