Higher bonnets in SUVs 'a clear and growing threat' to children, report finds
The bonnet height of new cars across Europe is rising relentlessly, a report has found, bringing a 'clear and growing threat to public safety, especially for children'.
Higher fronts on cars significantly increase the death rate when pedestrians are struck. The analysis also found drivers in the tallest cars could not see children as old as nine at all when they were directly in front of the vehicle.
In crashes, high-bonneted SUVs are more likely to strike the vital organs in the core of adults' bodies and the heads of children. Hitting pedestrians above their centre of gravity means they are more likely to be knocked forward and down and then be driven over.
In contrast, low bonnets tend to hit pedestrians' legs, giving them a greater chance of falling on to the vehicle and being deflected to the side.
The report, by the advocacy group Transport & Environment, found the average bonnet height of new cars sold in Europe rose from 77cm in 2010 to 84cm in 2024.
The rise matches booming sales of SUVs, from 12% to 56% of all cars over the same period, with the increasing size of vehicles being described as 'carspreading' or 'autobesity'.
SUVs are also 20% more polluting on average and this rise in sales is cancelling out the reduction in climate-heating CO2 due to electric vehicles and fuel efficiency improvements.
There is no legal limit to bonnet height across Europe. The researchers said a limit should be introduced for 2035 and set at about 85cm.
The report used data from Euro NCAP, the safety rating programme for new vehicles, and sales data to assess the growth in bonnet heights.
Transport & Environment also commissioned Loughborough University School of Design to test the visibility of children from high-fronted cars.
It found a driver of a Ram TRX was unable to see children aged up to nine who were standing directly in front, while a Land Rover Defender driver could not see children aged up to four and a half.
A 10cm increase in bonnet height, from 80cm to 90cm, raises the risk of death in a crash by 27% for pedestrians and cyclists, according to a Belgian study involving 300,000 casualties.
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