Lawmakers push for NHTSA to use crash test dummies that better depict female bodies

DETROIT (FOX 2) - Statistics show that female drivers are more likely to be seriously injured in crashes than males.

"A female driver is 73% more likely than a male driver to be severely injured in a vehicle accident and 17% more likely to die," Michigan Congresswoman Brenda Lawrence said.

Lawrence and 65 other lawmakers are urging the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to use more accurate, updated female crash test dummies. 

"The female crash test dummy which we get all our data from most commonly used are scaled down versions of a male," Lawrence said.

According to the NHTSA, test dummies represent the 50th percentile for males. For females, it is the 5th percentile, which is a body that is 4 feet, 11 inches tall and weighs 108 pounds.

Lawrence said that isn't an accurate representation of female drivers.

A statement from the NHSTA reads in part, "Real-world data suggested that the smaller females (not 50th percentile) were at greater risk of incurring injuries."

The statement goes on to say, "Thus, the agency uses a 5th percentile female crash test dummy in various frontal crash tests to ensure optimal occupant protection (including protection of ‘average females’) in vehicle designs."

Dr. Trevor Eckenswiller, who works in the emergency room at Beaumont Troy, said the disparities in data show that something needs to change. 

"We see car crashes every day at the ER and prevention is really the most important thing," he said. "When we are having such staggering differences in mortality especially, something needs to be looked at."

FOX 2 reached out to Ford, GM, and Stellantis for their takes on the matter. In a video, GM said it uses different sizes of crash test dummies when testing its vehicles. Ford and Stellantis have not responded.