Attention needs to be paid to car-related safety incidents

-The KCA, the MOLIT and the Regular Consultation Body involving domestic carmakers conducted a joint campaign-

    As the supply of cars has increased and more people have used cars today, a variety of car-related safety incidents (hereinafter referred to as ‘non-crash incidents’)* have occurred, requiring consumers’ attention. However, here in Korea, there isn’t enough information regarding the status, risks and prevention of non-crash incidents.

* (non-crash incidents) refer to safety-relatwww.googlec.omed incidents including getting stuck in or hit by a vehicle part such as door, window, trunk lid, etc., falls while entering or exiting a vehicle, or vehicle-related heat stroke that can occur while using a car.

    According to the Korea Consumer Agency (KCA), the number of non-crash incidents received at the Consumer Injury Surveillance System (CISS) for 3 years and 6 months (January 2014 ~ June 2017) stood at 3,223, meaning that around 1,000 non-crash incidents occurred annually.

* (2014) 900 → (2015) 961 → (2016) 823 → (June 2017) 539

■ More than 90% of non-crash incidents are involved with car doors, trunks or windows.

    The vehicle parts most commonly involved in non-crash incidents were ‘door’ (80.2%, 2,585 cases), ‘trunk’ (7.6%, 244 cases), and ‘window’ (2.3%, 75 cases), respectively. In particular, the non-crash incidents related to these three vehicle parts accounted for more than 90% of the total non-crash incidents.

    The most common ways to be injured in non-crash incidents were getting fingers caught in (72.3%(1,868 cases)) or squashed by (77.3%(58 cases)) a closing ‘door’ or ‘window’, and being hit on the head by a trunk lid (71.3%(174 cases)).

    And the most common types of injuries were contusion or larceration, but injuries such as finger fractures (206 cases) and amputations (15 cases) caused by crush injuries from a car door also often occurred, requiring close attention.

■ Around half of the total non-crash incidents occur to children.

    Almost half (49.9%, 1,608 cases) of the total non-crash incidents occurred to children age 14 and younger, and people in their ‘30s~50s’, who are the largest group of car drivers, accounted for 34.0% of non-crash incidents.

    As for the non-crash incidents involving children, it was found that the vehicle parts most commonly involved in the non-crash incidents were ‘door’(83.3%, 1,340 cases), ‘trunk’(3.5%, 56 cases), and ‘car seat’(3.1%, 49 cases), respectively, and children more frequently fell from car seats compared to adults. In addition, in some cases, severe injuries including burns caused by ‘cigar jacks’ or losing consciousness after getting a neck stuck in a car window occurred, requiring parents’ attention.

■ Improvement to be made regarding the warning/caution indications of automotive-related instruction manuals.

    An investigation on the warning/caution indications regarding non-crash incidents written on the automotive-related instruction manuals of five different types of vehicles manufactured by major domestic carmakers found that there were no indications of caution at all or if any, the letters on the instruction manuals were very small and hard to read.

    On this account, five major domestic carmakers (Kia Motors, Renault Samsung Motors, Ssangyong Moto Company, GM Korea, Hyundai Motors) have accepted the recommendations made by the KCA, and decided to improve their automotive instruction manuals for new cars which will be produced next year by adding warning phrases regarding non-crash incidents, and increasing the readability of the manuals.

■ A Regular Consultation Body was formed, and a campaign to prevent non-crash incidents was conducted.

    On the 4th of December, the KCA, the KAMA (Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association) and the five major domestic carmakers formed a ‘Regular Consultation Body’ involving domestic carmakers which would serve as a regular cooperative framework for the safety of consumers. The opening ceremony of the consultation body was attended by the Executive Director of Consumer Safety Center of KCA and executives of the major domestic carmakers, and they agreed that joint efforts should be strengthened to preemptively identify any harmful effects such as non-crash incidents and secure consumer safety.

    In addition, the KCA conducted a campaign to prevent non-crash incidents with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport(MOLIT) and the Regular Consultation Body. As part of the campaign, posters containing information on risks of non-crash incidents and preventive measures were posted for one month at 3,716 offices including 59 vehicle inspection offices of the Korea Transportation Safety Authority(TS), and car dealerships and service centers of the five major domestic carmakers so that consumers’ awareness about safety could be increased.

    Furthermore, the KCA will actively support the domestic car market’s voluntary efforts to secure safety through the Regular Consultation Body, and also continue to make efforts to spread a safety culture together with relevant organizations including the MOLIT.