NORFOLK, Va. —
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, or IIHS, says work vehicles were involved in about 16% of U.S. roadway fatalities in 2024.
“We look at fatal crashes in the U.S., about 16% of those fatal crashes involve a work vehicle. It could be as small as a light van, cargo van, all the way up to your big rigs,” explained David Kidd, Vice President of Vehicle Research, IIHS
IIHS tested 11 commercial vehicles and found marginal and poor ratings were common in its vehicle-to-vehicle and pedestrian front crash prevention tests.
Models including the Chevrolet Express 2500 and GMC Savana 2500 received poor ratings. IIHS testing shows the Savana's optional system provided forward-collision warnings but did not reduce speed in vehicle-to-vehicle tests, while pedestrian front crash prevention was not available. Other vehicles also struggled in tests involving motorcycles and pedestrians.
IIHS officials say the findings are a wake-up call for manufacturers and can also help businesses make more informed choices when purchasing work vehicles.
“We're basically putting automakers on notice that they should invest in safety in these type of work trucks in addition to making them versatile for the different types of uses that they are used for. The other important thing is that now as a business, they have information that they can use to procure safer vehicles,” said David Kidd, Vice President of Vehicle Research, IIHS
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