Are Electric Vehicles Safer Than Gas Cars? IIHS Study Weighs In

Tesla Inc TSLA regularly releases safety reports about its vehicles.

The company's latest report shows its vehicles only get into an accident one time for every 4.19 million miles traveled while using the Autopilot driver-assist software. This is in comparison to the average crash rate of once every 484,000 miles for all vehicles, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Association (NHTSA).

But when accidents do happen, it seems Tesla and other electric vehicles are safer than their gas-powered counterparts.

Teslarati shared an analysis of insurance data from the U.S. that shows EVs, in general, keep their occupants safer in crashes. The data was shared by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).

The Volvo ADR VLVLY XC40 Recharge and Ford Motor Company F Mustang Mach-E, both fully electric, performed well in IIHS safety tests. The XC40 received a Top Safety Pick+ award and the Mach-E received a Top Safety Pick rating. Tesla vehicles also score high ratings in IIHS tests, with a Top Safety Pick+ award. 

In a recent study performed by the IIHS-affiliated Highway Loss Data Institute, the rates of injury claims for drivers and passengers of EVs were 40% lower compared to gas-powered vehicles from 2011 to 2019. The IIHS said these results were similar to the findings of an earlier study the Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI) conducted on hybrid cars, which pointed out the lower injury rates may be related to the weight of the vehicle's batteries. 

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(Photo: Mustang Mach E courtesy of Ford)