Women often spend a lot of time driving their children to and from school, extracurricular activities like sports, and family activities.
Because they spend so much time on the road with such precious cargo, women often choose vehicles based on their safety rating and other perceived safety features. Yet new vehicle ratings reveal that safety information had been skewed for men, and that women and children may actually be at greater risk of serious injury from car accidents than previously thought.
Starting with 2011 models, the federal government began using a smaller “female” crash-test dummy for some safety tests, instead of the standard, average-sized “male” dummy. The result has been a lower safety rating for many vehicles – as much as two stars – to reflect the increased risk of serious injury for smaller passengers, such as women and children.