Spotlight on Headlights: Could Better Headlights Improve Fleet Safety?

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) is known for its crash-test dummies and vehicle safety ratings. Until now, the IIHS has focused on rating how vehicles perform at protecting drivers and passengers in various crash scenarios. But the IIHS recently devised a new test, for an important crash-avoidance feature that is standard equipment on all vehicles—and many cars, trucks, and small SUVs are earning “poor” ratings.

According to the IIHS, half of all fatal crashes in the United States occur in the dark and more than one-quarter on unlit roads. Headlights are clearly a safety necessity—but are they getting the job done? And what about newer headlight technologies—LED and high-intensity discharge (HID) lamps that are replacing existing halogen bulbs? Are they giving drivers enough warning about objects in the road to enable them to stop?

The IIHS decided to find out.

Looking for Illumination

There are federal standards for headlight illumination—but they allow a huge variation in the amount of light provided. So the IIHS (which is a nonprofit organization) created its headlight ratings to determine whether headlights were providing adequate warning for drivers in the dark.

Since March 2016, the IIHS has tested headlights in midsize passenger cars, small SUVs, and pickup trucks to determine how far ahead they enable a driver to see and how much glare they create for oncoming drivers. Measurements of illumination, in units of lux (1 lux is about the amount of light the full moon provides to someone on the ground), were taken along a straight road, and along both sharp and gentle left and right curves, to determine how far ahead the lights illuminated the road to a brightness of at least 5 lux. Both low-beam and high-beam headlights were tested.

The IIHS uses a rating system that classifies vehicles and features as “good,” “acceptable,” “marginal,” and “poor.” “Good” headlights should enable a driver traveling in a straight line at 70 mph enough time and visibility to see, identify, and react to an object on the right-hand side of the road, by coming to a complete, controlled stop if needed. Only one midsize car, the Toyota Prius V (the highest trim level), and one pickup truck, the Toyota Ridgeline, were rated “good” for headlight performance. In order to have time to stop with lower-rated headlights, drivers whose headlights are rated “poor” would need to slow down by 20 to 35 miles per hour (mph) to give themselves time to avoid a crash.

Brighten Things Up

The good news is that this is a fleet safety improvement that could cost little but provide great returns. There are two ways to get better headlight performance and reduce nighttime crash risk on your existing vehicles.

Clear up the plastic. On older or high-mileage vehicles, the plastic headlight lenses may have grown hazy. Inexpensive buffing kits are available that can restore clarity to headlight lenses and improve nighttime visibility.

Upgrade the bulbs. Except for the two models mentioned, all of the models tested by the IIHS came equipped from the manufacturer with bulbs that rated only “acceptable” to “poor.” But it’s likely that your local auto parts store or mechanic can replace your headlight bulbs with better quality bulbs that provide greater illumination while still controlling glare.

Depending upon the models in your fleet, you may also be able to upgrade from basic halogen headlights to HID or LED bulbs. Sometimes this can create dangerous glare for other drivers, or require rewiring of the headlight system, so consult with a professional mechanic before doing this.

Need more suggestions for improving fleet safety? Safety.BLR.com^® can take you where you want to go.