Following International Women’s Day 2020, one area of inequality highlighted is car safety. Statistics show women have a much higher risk of being seriously injured on the road.
Overall, women are 47 percent more likely to be killed or seriously injured in a car accident than men.
Figures obtained by Select Car Leasing show that, in terms of leg injuries, the difference is as severe as 79 percent. Women are also 58 percent more likely to hurt their arms, plus 44 percent more likely to hurt their necks.
Gender inequality in safety testing
So why are women so much more at risk? Seemingly, it’s because they’re under-represented when it comes to crash testing. The above stats were the case all the way back in 2011, according to the University of Virginia, and have barely changed since.
This is because crash test dummies still seem to favour men. Of the five crash tests that must be passed before a car goes on sale, just one includes a female dummy. That test only involves the dummy being in the passenger seat, too.
So there isn’t actually any hard data on how the average female driver really fares in an accident. In America, there’s just one female crash dummy. She’s five feet tall and weighs just seven stone. Not overly representative.
Pregnant women: virtually ignored in crash safety
There is also no seatbelt yet developed that is safe for pregnant women.
Research from 2004 says pregnant women should still use seatbelts, but that 62 percent of those late into their term don’t fit the standard three-point belt design.