The Difference Between NHTSA and IIHS Safety Ratings

As a driver, you are probably aware of safety ratings on the vehicles which interest you, but do you really know what they mean. Most likely, you don't. Safety ratings that you see in vehicles at Steingold Volvo Cars aren't all that difficult to understand. Here is what you need to know.

Two groups rate vehicles in the United States: the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). Buyers need to consider both organizations' ratings because they look at safety aspects in different manners. Both run vehicles through a battery of tests to determine ratings.

IIHS uses a tier rating of poor, marginal acceptable and good to determine the quality of driver side and passenger side front overlap, frontal offset, side strength, roof strength and head restraints and seats. NHTSA uses a five star system to evaluate how vehicles perform in a series tests that measure crashworthiness.