Side-Impact Air Bags (SABs)

SABs provide significant safety benefits to occupants of vehicles involved in side crashes. NHTSA estimates that in side-impact crashes involving at least one fatality, nearly 60 percent of those killed have suffered brain injuries. NHTSA also estimates that if all U.S. vehicles were equipped with head protection SABs - as compared to no vehicles being equipped with this technology - a total of 976 lives would be saved and another 932 serious injuries prevented each year. In preparation for meeting the upgraded FMVSS Side Impact Protection standards, manufacturers are now offering head protection SABs in a number of new vehicles. Data show that hundreds of serious injuries are being prevented and hundreds more lives saved as a result.