Crash Facts
- Most injuries occur at crash speeds below 12 mph.
- Most cars withstand 8-12 mph impacts without vehicle damage.
- More than half of all Low Speed Rear Impact Collision injuries occur without vehicle damage.
- There is no correlation between vehicle damage and extent of injury.
- The peak acceleration of the head is much greater than the peak acceleration of the vehicle.
- A 5-mph crash typically produces about 10-12 g of acceleration of the occupant’s head.
Information provided by the Spine Research Institute of San Diego
Whiplash Statistics
- More than 3 million Americans are injured by a CAD every year.
- The reported risk of injury in Low Speed Rear Impact Collisions is 35-68%. The Japanese Auto Insurance Rating Association reports a 50% neck injury rate.
- About 10% of those injured become permanently disabled.
- “Minor” neck injuries account for up to 60% of all permanent impairment claims.
- So, for every 6 million occupants in Low Speed Rear Impact Collisions:
- About 3 million will be injured (about the population size of South Carolina).
- About 1.5 million will have chronic pain (about the population size of Nebraska).
- About 300,000 of these become disabled usually due to pain (about the population size of Wyoming).
- Nearly half of all chronic neck pain in America is due to car crashes—mostly Low Speed Rear Impact
- Collisions.
- About 9% of all Americans suffer from chronic neck pain due to Low Speed Rear Impact Collisions.
- Children are at 2/3 the risk of adults.
Information provided by the Spine Research Institute of San Diego