Study Says Death More Likely With Anti-Lock Brakes

Occupants of cars with anti-lock brakes are more likely to be in crashes that kill them than occupants of cars without anti-lock brakes, according to an insurance institute study.

Cars with anti-lock brakes are especially more likely to be in crashes where no other car is involved but a passenger is killed--such as when the car runs off the road, according to the study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

The risk of fatality also increases slightly for people in a car with anti-lock brakes that is involved in a crash with other vehicles.

“These findings add to evidence that anti-lock brakes aren’t producing overall safety benefits,” said Brian O’Neill, president of the Arlington, Va.-based institute, which is backed by insurance companies.

The study found a passenger had a 45% greater chance of dying in a single-vehicle car crash in a car with anti-lock brakes than in the same car with old-style brakes.

The increase in risk of death for any passenger in a car with anti-lock brakes during a multiple-vehicle accident is 6%, the study said.

The institute based its results on nearly 1,000 fatal crashes from 1986 to 1995 in the government’s Fatal Accident Reporting System, which accumulates data on all crashes reported in the United States.

The study involved 41 vehicle models with anti-lock brake systems compared to the same model without anti-lock brakes and no other major design changes in the previous year.

Anti-lock brake systems are designed to prevent a vehicle’s wheels from locking to give drivers better control during emergency braking on slippery roads.

When the anti-lock brakes engage, the brake pedal sometimes vibrates as the system works by pumping the brakes faster than is humanly possible. Drivers often grew up learning to pump the brakes themselves, an action that works against the firm step on the pedal required to engage the anti-lock system.