About the Institutes

Much has changed on the nation's roads since the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) was founded more than half a century ago — and many of those changes came about as a result of IIHS work. Here are some key dates from our history.

1959	Three insurance industry groups representing more than 500 auto insurers establish IIHS to funnel support to academic and other organizations in the field of highway safety.
1968	IIHS becomes a scientific research and communications organization after the Board of Governors votes to change its mission.
1969	IIHS launches bumper tests, which lead to the first federal bumper standard.
1972	The Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI) is organized as an affiliate of IIHS to collect, analyze and publish insurance loss information on most car, SUV, pickup truck and motorcycle models on U.S. roads.
1973	IIHS crash tests demonstrate that car fuel system designs allow ruptures, gas leaks and fires in rear crashes. This leads to new federal rules to reduce leaks.
1974	IIHS evaluates the consequences of lowering the legal minimum age for purchasing alcohol. Findings provide the scientific basis for enacting 21 minimum age laws in all states.
	IIHS develops the injury severity score to help medical personnel assess the threat to life of injuries to multiple body parts.
1976	IIHS crash tests demonstrate airbag effectiveness in frontal crashes. Highlights are shown before a U.S. congressional committee.
1979	IIHS research on signal light timing leads traffic engineers to lengthen yellow light intervals.
1980	IIHS tests demonstrate the tendency of the Jeep CJ to roll over, prompting the government to require rollover warnings on some vehicles.
	IIHS is first to document the hazards to pedestrians of allowing motorists to turn right at red lights. This leads policymakers in New York City and elsewhere to resist or limit right-turn-on-red.
	IIHS makes first appearance on primetime television in "60 Minutes" segment on Jeep rollover dangers.
1983	Supreme Court rules in favor of insurers' efforts to get airbags in cars.
1989	IIHS publishes the first consumer information that compares death rates among drivers by vehicle make and model.
1990	Two 1989 Chrysler LeBarons collide head-on in rural Virginia. Both drivers walk away with minor injuries. The crash, believed to be the first of its kind involving two airbag-equipped vehicles, vindicates IIHS and other safety advocates who lobbied for decades for an airbag requirement, which had just been enacted.
1992	IIHS opens the Vehicle Research Center (VRC) in Ruckersville, Virginia.
1993	IIHS reveals that daylight saving time reduces crash deaths, a finding that contributes to subsequent designation of more weeks clock-forward.
1995	IIHS launches offset crash testing to rate frontal crashworthiness. Automakers respond by improving vehicle designs to provide better occupant protection in frontal crashes.
	IIHS rates head restraints for their potential to protect people's necks in rear-end crashes. Automakers respond with designs that reduce neck injury risk.
1996	Years of IIHS research on teen drivers pay off when the nation's first three-stage graduated licensing law goes into effect in Florida.
2003	IIHS launches crash tests to rate crashworthiness in side impacts. Automakers respond by improving vehicle designs to provide better protection in side impacts.
2005	The first Top Safety Pick awards recognize vehicles with top ratings in IIHS front, side and rear tests.
	IIHS finds huge benefits of electronic stability control in reducing serious crashes, accelerating introduction of this feature ahead of federal requirements.
2008	IIHS is first to compare booster seats and rate their potential effectiveness based on how well they improve the fit of adult lap and shoulder belts for children too old for child restraints but too young for belts alone.
2009	IIHS launches roof strength ratings to help consumers choose vehicles that will protect them in rollovers. A good roof strength rating becomes a requirement for Top Safety Pick.
	In honor of its 50th anniversary, IIHS conducts a crash test that shows just how much vehicle safety has improved. The test is a 40 mph frontal offset crash involving two Chevrolets, a 1959 Bel Air and a 2009 Malibu. The Malibu's structure holds up well, while the Bel Air crumples around the driver dummy.
2010	HLDI examines the effectiveness of state bans on handheld cellphones and texting, determining that neither restriction reduces crashes.
	IIHS crash tests demonstrate the safety risks of allowing low-speed vehicles, which are exempt from federal safety standards for passenger vehicles, on public roads.
	Contrary to expectations, IIHS study finds that older drivers aren't dying more often in crashes, even though they're holding onto their licenses longer.
2011	An IIHS study of red light cameras in use in 14 large cities finds the devices reduce the fatal red light running crash rate by nearly a quarter.
	In the first real-world study of advanced crash avoidance systems, HLDI shows that Volvo's City Safety, a forward collision avoidance system, prevents crashes.
2012	HLDI analysis of insurance claims data shows that forward collision warning and adaptive headlights are reducing crashes.
	IIHS introduces a small overlap frontal test to driver further improvements in crash protection. Most of the vehicles evaluated earn poor or marginal ratings.

Read about the founding of the IIHS in-depth:
"Origins and purpose of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety"

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