IBC urges driver mitigation efforts in response to headrest study

Responding to the release of a multi-national study of vehicle headrest designs, the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) says consumers must also play a role in their own safety.
The study, which included tests by the U.S. Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and the Insurance Corp. of B.C. (ICBC), amongst others, found many manufacturers’ head and neck rest designs inadequate for properly protecting vehicle occupants from whiplash-type injuries in an accident situation.
But IBC says consumers also need to do more to protect themselves in fact, an earlier IBC study found many drivers were not properly setting adjustable headrests to a position which would protect them in the case of a collision.
“Would we like to see all headrests designed properly to reduce or even prevent whiplash? Of course,” says Mary Lou O’Reilly, IBC’s vice president of public affairs and marketing. “Until they are, however, there are simple steps every driver, in almost any car, can take to prevent or reduce the likelihood of whiplash.” The IBC is in the midst of a multi-year educational campaign to teach drivers how to properly set their headrests. The “Rest Up! Save Your Neck!” suggests the following headrest position: the center of the headrest slightly above the top of the ear; the top of the headrest as high as the top of the head; and the headrest 5-10 cm from the back of the head.
The IBC says proper headrest adjustments could reduce whiplash and other soft tissue injuries by 40%.