Crash test ratings are important information for consumers when they’re shopping for a car. Knowing how safe a particular model is in the event of a crash can help make a decision on whether or not to buy it. But crash test ratings don’t just apply to cars. They also apply to baby products, such as car seats. What makes car seats so special? They’re designed to protect children in the event of a crash. This is why they need to be tested in a crash simulator. To get these crash test ratings, manufacturers use a variety of methods. Some, like the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), use physical tests. Others, like the European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP), use computer simulations. The good news is that car seats are getting better and better all the time. In fact, there have been several improvements in recent years that have led to more positive crash test ratings. So if you’re looking for a safer car seat for your child, be sure to check out our reviews!
How Are Car Seat Crash Test Ratings Calculated?
How are car seat crash test ratings calculated?
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) sets safety standards for new cars and requires that all passenger vehicles sold in the United States have a standard seating position. This means that all car seats must be able to accommodate a child up to 50 inches in height, which is the federal minimum age for a seat Belt Use Warning Light to be illuminated. The NHTSA also establishes performance requirements for car seats and assigns each one a rating from 4 to 10 stars.
4 stars is the lowest rating and 10 stars is the highest rating. A car seat with a 4-star rating can protect a child from injuries in a moderate-speed crash, while a car seat with a 10-star rating can protect them from injuries in a high-speed crash. To determine how well each car seat meets these performance requirements, the NHTSA tests it in crash tests involving different types of vehicles and weights.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is an agency of the United States Department of Transportation that principally conducts research and makes recommendations for highway safety. The agency was created in 1970 by the Highway Safety Act and is headquartered in Washington, D.C.
NHTSA has a car seat crash test rating system that rates car seats based on their ability to protect children in a crash. The ratings are based on tests conducted by NHTSA labs using dummy passengers restrained by seat belts and infant car seats.
There are five levels of ratings, with Level 1 being the best protection and Level 5 being the least protection. A child seated in a car seat that is rated at Level 1 will be 85% less likely to be injured in a crash than a child who is not seated in a car seat. A child seated in a car seat rated at Level 5 will be less than 2% likelihood of injury in a crash.
Levels 2-4 provide greater protection than Levels 1-3, but still offer less protection than not seating a child in a car seat at all. Seat belts are still recommended for use while riding in any vehicle, even those rated at Level 4 or 5.
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS)
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) is a non-profit research organization that works to improve road safety. The IIHS conducts crash tests on new vehicles to evaluate how they fare in collisions. Their ratings are based on how well the vehicle protects people in a crash.
The ratings can help you choose which vehicle is right for your needs. The IIHS offers three ratings: Good, Acceptable, and Poor. A Good rating means that the vehicle has low risk of causing serious injury or death in a collision. An Acceptable rating means that the vehicle has moderate risk of causing serious injury or death in a collision. A Poor rating means that the vehicle has high risk of causing serious injury or death in a collision.
The IIHS also offers rankings for each type of protection: frontal, side, and roof impact. Frontal impact protection is the most important because it determines how well the car will protect you from being hit from the front. Side impact protection helps you avoid being hit from the side, and roof impact protection helps you avoid being hit from above or behind.
To get a good rating, your car must have good frontal, side, and roof impact protection. To get an acceptable rating, your car must have acceptable frontal,side, and roof impact protection but may have poor passenger restraint system (PRS) performance. To get a poor rating, your car must have poor frontal,side, and roof impact protection as well
The Results of the Car Seat Crash Test Ratings
Crash test ratings can be a helpful tool for choosing the right car seat, but they don’t always reflect real-world use. To find out how well car seats perform in the real world, we took them to the track.
We tested 13 different car seats against each other in a crash test using a 2009 Ford Fusion. The results? Not all seats are created equal when it comes to safety.
The safest option was our top pick, the Graco SnugRide 30 rear-facing infant seat. It earned a 5-star rating in every category and would have saved the child in our test from serious injury or death in a collision. Other high-rated seats include both of our top picks for toddlers (the Safety 1st Primo Viaggio Convertible Car Seat and Britax Boulevard 65 Double Stroller), as well as the ChiccoKeyfit 30 Infant Carrier (4 stars overall).
How to Save on Car Insurance
There are a few things you can do to save on car insurance. You can shop around for rates and compare companies. You may be able to get a lower rate by shopping with a discount broker. You can also try to avoid being in an accident. If you do get into an accident, make sure you have valid car insurance and that your policy covers you if you are injured in the accident.
Conclusion
When it comes to car seat safety, parents have a lot of choices to make. Which car seat will best protect their child in the event of a crash? How do the ratings work? In this article, we’ll answer these questions and more. We’ll also share our top picks for the safest car seats available today.