High Number Of Whiplash Claims Down To Bad Prevention

Whiplash claims are so high partially due to the equally high number of cars lacking effective prevention systems. One in six new cars on sale in Britain fail to offer adequate protection from debilitating whiplash injuries, new crash test results have revealed. 16% of models are rated 'poor' at preventing potentially permanent neck injuries in collisions at speeds as low as 10mph.

Popular 'eco' city cars were found to be the worst at minimising whiplash injury. This is no light matter as this type of injury accounts for 80% of casualty claims and costs £1 billion a year in insurance pay-outs. But it is not just eco-friendly cars that are to blame, family-friendly vehicles which presumably should be doubly responsible when it comes to safety features; a clutch of hatchbacks, family saloons, people carriers, 4x4s and prestige models, were also slated in the ratings based on independent laboratory tests to assess how well restraints support occupants' heads during impacts.

The Motor Insurance Repair Research Centre at Thatcham, Berks, said its latest batch of tests showed that motorists choosing smaller cars in a bid to reduce carbon dioxide emissions are being "short changed" on eco models that fail to come up to scratch on safety.

Crash laboratory manager Matthew Avery said: "City cars are not equipped to protect their occupants' necks when they absorb the crash energy from larger, heavier vehicles. Poor seat design makes whiplash far more likely. Good seat design is not something that should be largely linked to higher value cars.

"This latest set of results will hopefully act as a catalyst for vehicle manufacturers to look at improving seat and head restraint design within this important and growing sector."

The best seats are those with large head restraints and anti-whiplash devices that absorb the forces of the crash or move forward automatically on impact to support the head. Of those tested, 31 models were singled out as 'poor' in the ratings that range from 'poor' through 'marginal' and 'acceptable' to 'good.' 47 were branded merely marginal while 49 were acceptable and 68 good.

The poor category includes the Ford Ka and Fiat Panda city cars but also, perhaps surprisingly, contains Jaguar's X-Type and the BMW 3-Series along with the Honda Jazz, Citroen C2, Jeep Cherokee and Volkswagen Sharan.

Only Renault's Twingo and Smart's Fortwo - the best performing city cars - were rated acceptable and two-thirds of larger Superminis were either poor or marginal. Saab, Audi and Volvo are the only car makers rated 'good' on all new models.

Whiplash is officially classed as a minor injury but can lead to extensive pain for many years and occurs not just in rear end shunts but also in head-on and side impacts. Symptoms range from stiffness and tenderness in the upper back, neck and arms along with headaches and dizziness for up to three months to permanent soft tissue damage to tendons and ligaments.

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders refuted criticism of city cars and insisted that vehicles are safer overall compared to three years ago when 36% were rated poor.

"We are encouraged by the results which show more models are rated as good," said SMMT spokesman Nigel Wonnacott.

"Manufacturers are investing in safer seat design and the vast majority of cars are performing either well or better than poor. We are confident that city cars perform in accordance with regulations and offer better protection than they ever have done in the past."

Sofia is an author of several articles pertaining to No Win No Fee, Compensation Claims, Personal Injury Claims and other legal articles.