The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) is pushing automakers to improve their crash avoidance systems and demanding superior protection for back seat passengers in the 2026 award season.<\/p>\n
Even with tougher rules, 63 vehicles qualified for IIHS awards so far. That is up from 48 at the same point last year. Of the winners, 45 earn a\u00a0TOP SAFETY PICK+ and 18 earn a\u00a0TOP SAFETY PICK.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis year, we\u2019re asking automakers to make excellent protection for back seat passengers the norm,\u201d IIHS President David Harkey said. \u201cFor\u00a0TOP SAFETY PICK+, we\u2019re requiring crash avoidance systems that are better at preventing pedestrian crashes as well as higher speed crashes with other vehicles.\u201d<\/p>\n
This year\u2019s winners include a variety of models, ranging from small cars to large pickups and from economy cars to luxury vehicles. The manufacturer suggested retail prices for more than a dozen\u00a0TOP SAFETY PICK+ winners start under $30,000.<\/p>\n
The biggest change in the award criteria is the addition of the new vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention test.<\/p>\n
\u201cImproving crash avoidance is key to achieving our\u00a030×30 vision<\/a>\u00a0of reducing US crash deaths by 30% by 2030,\u201d Harkey added. \u201cStronger structures and better seat belts save lives, but the safest crash is the one that never happens.\u201d<\/p>\n