Study Suggests Knee Airbags Aren't Effective at Preventing Injury

Airbags are a common safety feature found in trucks, cars, SUVs and other automobiles. When a vehicle sustains a collision, sensors trigger to deploy the airbags to create "cushioning" between the driver/passengers and the dashboard. When it comes to airbags, however, more isn't necessarily better.

According to a study conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), knee airbags -- airbags that are designed to protect the knees from collision-related injury -- don't offer any meaningful level of protection against injury. In fact, researchers found that knee airbags actually increased the risk of injury for some drivers and passengers.

For the study, IIHS researchers analyzed vehicular collision data from 14 states while paying close attention to the rate of injury among vehicles with knee airbags and those without knee airbags. So, what did they find? Researchers found that the risk of collision-related injury in vehicles without knee airbags was 7.9%, whereas the risk of collision-related injury in vehicles with knee airbags was 7.4%.

Based on the IIHS's findings, you may assume that knee airbags offer a minor improvement in automotive safety. However, IIHS conducted a separate study involving crash tests to further explore the impact of knee airbags. In this study, IIHS researchers performed over 400 crash tests. They discovered that knee airbags actually increased the risk of injury. Specifically, knee airbags increased the risk of injury on the lower leg and femur.

When speaking about the findings, IIHS's Becky Mueller explained that other safety measures are available to protect against leg and foot injuries.

"There are many different design strategies for protecting against the kind of leg and foot injuries that knee airbags are meant to address,”  said IIHS senior research engineer Becky Mueller. "Other options may be just as, if not more, effective."

In the United States, federal law requires all cars and light trucks to have air bags on both sides of the front. Airbags generally create a safer driving and riding experience by minimizing the risk of injury during a collision. When a collision occurs, the airbags will automatically inflate to protect the driver and passengers from potentially serious or even fatal injury. As revealed in the IIHS's study, however, knee airbags may actually do more harm than good.

You can learn more about the IIHS's study on knee airbags by clicking here.