The research by the IIHS (Insurance Institute for Highway Safety) in the US found that systems with automatic braking reduce rear-end crashes by about 40% on average, while forward collision warning alone cuts them by 23%. The autobrake systems also greatly reduce injury crashes.

The study added that if all vehicles had been equipped with autobrake, there would have been at least 700,000 fewer police-reported rear-end crashes in 2013.

The IIHS research comes on the back of research carried out by Euro NCAP and ANCAP, the independent safety bodies for Europe and Australasia, which showed a 38% overall reduction in real-world, rear-end crashes for vehicles fitted with low speed AEB compared to a sample of equivalent vehicles with no AEB.

“The success of front crash prevention represents a big step toward safer roads,” said David Zuby, IIHS chief research officer. “As this technology becomes more widespread, we can expect to see noticeably fewer rear-end crashes. The same goes for the whiplash injuries that often result from these crashes and can cause a lot of pain and lost productivity.”

In the US, although front crash prevention is steadily becoming more prevalent, in most cases it is offered as optional equipment. However, in September, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and IIHS announced an agreement in principle with automakers to make AEB standard on all models.