In response to the article Danger on the Roads: Which Trucks Have the Highest Fatality Rates, Steve Saltzgiver, former fleet manager and current fleet success senior advisor for RTA: The Fleet Success Company, shares valuable insights on how we evaluate truck safety.

"Good article about the use of data, which I love as a data-nerd. However, fatalities per billion miles traveled can be a misleading indicator if used in isolation," Saltzgiver begins. 

While this metric provides insight into safety relative to distance driven, he shares that it fails to account for critical elements like crash frequency, severity, and context.

Saltzgiver notes that focusing solely on fatalities — rare but severe events — does not reflect total accidents, near-misses, or non-fatal crashes, all of which are essential safety indicators. 

"A truck brand with fewer accidents overall might still have a higher fatality rate if its accidents are more severe, such as high-speed collisions," he explains. 

Similarly, high-mileage trucks may appear "safer" on this metric simply because of the lower occurrence of fatalities per mile driven.

To paint a more accurate picture of truck safety performance, Saltzgiver suggests incorporating additional metrics:

1. Accident frequency per million miles traveled

2. Fatality rate per accident

3. Non-fatal crash rates

4. Severity breakdown (fatalities, injuries, property damage)

5. Driver error vs. mechanical failure rates

"Combining these indicators would likely provide a more comprehensive understanding of a brand's safety performance than relying solely on fatalities per billion miles," he concludes.

Have thoughts on truck safety metrics? Share your insights with us at Work Truck!