In a recent study, the IIHS discovered a startling truth. On the second-hand market, drivers are simply unaware of their car’s active safety features. This sobering discovery means that all of the new safety features automakers and legislators have continued to develop get used less as cars pass down the marketplace. The IIHS’s study uncovered some very interesting truths about driver education when purchasing a car, which is especially important as more buyers flock to the used market during this time of limited new car supply.
The IIHS conducted a study that consisted of 750 car owners with newer models from the 2016 to 2019 model year. 402 owners bought their cars new while 362 bought theirs on the used market. According to their study, “Used car buyers were substantially less likely than new car buyers to know about the advanced driver assistance features present on their vehicles,” says IIHS Senior Research Scientist Ian Reagan, the author of the study. “They were also less likely to be able to describe how those features work, and they had less trust in them. That could translate into less frequent use, causing crash reductions from these systems to wane.”
