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October 4, 2024

ADAS and Safety: Enhancing Road Safety and Its Impact on Body Shops

Safety technology is now integral to every driver. Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) feature lane departure warnings, automatic emergency braking, and blind-spot detection, all of which aim to reduce accidents and enhance the driving experience. By automating critical functions, ADAS provides drivers with an additional layer of safety that helps prevent potential collisions.

As reported by Forbes, research from LexisNexis Risk Solutions indicates that “ADAS vehicles showed a 27% reduction in bodily injury claim frequency and a 19% reduction in property damage frequency.”

The Safety Benefits of ADAS

ADAS technology is engineered to minimize human error and lower the rate of road accidents. Human error is cited as the cause of 94% of severe crashes, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). By introducing automated safety features, ADAS markedly decreases the likelihood of these errors, making roads safer for everyone.

Consider these statistics from a study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS):

  • Automatic emergency braking (AEB): Vehicles equipped with AEB have been shown to lower rear-end collisions by 50%.
  • Lane departure warning (LDW): This feature can lower sideswipe crashes by 11% and head-on collisions by 21%, significantly decreasing severe accidents.
  • Blind-spot detection: Vehicles with blind-spot detection experience a 14% reduction in lane-change crashes.

The data demonstrates the considerable safety benefits ADAS offers.

These systems help reduce the frequency and severity of accidents while protecting drivers and contributing to overall road safety.

How Safety Improvements Impact Body Shops

While the primary goal of ADAS is to enhance safety, the technology also profoundly impacts the automotive repair industry, mainly body shops. As vehicles become safer and less prone to accidents, the nature of repairs and body shops' services are evolving.

  • Fewer but more complex repairs: With fewer accidents due to ADAS, body shops might see fewer minor collision repairs. However, the complexity of repairs is increasing. ADAS-equipped vehicles often require sophisticated maintenance, particularly when sensors, cameras, and radars are damaged. These components are typically located in vulnerable areas, such as bumpers and windshields, and must be recalibrated or replaced to ensure the vehicle's safety systems function correctly.
  • Increased need for calibration services: ADAS systems rely on precise calibration to operate effectively. Even the slightest collision can cause misalignment of sensors and cameras, requiring recalibration. It is important for body shops to find the right partners to support and/or solve their ADAS calibration needs. Failure to offer ADAS calibration services can result in losing business to competitors who are better equipped to handle modern vehicle repairs.
  • Greater liability risks: As vehicles become more technologically advanced, the margin for error in repairs diminishes. Incorrect repairs or calibrations can lead to malfunctioning ADAS features, increasing the risk of accidents and potential legal liability for body shops. Body shops can protect themselves from legal exposure and maintain their reputation for quality and safety by ensuring all repairs and calibrations are performed to the highest standards.

Adapting to the Future of Vehicle Safety

For body shops, the rise of ADAS technology presents a challenge and an opportunity. As vehicles become safer and more advanced, body shops must adjust to these changes to stay relevant and profitable by investing in the necessary tools and training to handle ADAS repairs and calibrations, as well as remaining aware of the latest trends in vehicle technology.

By embracing the advancements in ADAS and prioritizing safety in every repair, body shops can improve their services and play a key role in improving road safety. As vehicle technology progresses, they must keep up with the latest developments to thrive.

Ultimately, ADAS is not just about reducing accidents; it's about redefining safety and shaping the future of the automotive industry. 

Body shops that recognize this and adapt accordingly will be in a solid position to lead in the new vehicle safety and repair era.

Partnering with Sentric helps ensure you and your customers are covered. We are committed to performing ADAS calibrations that meet OE specifications using Burke Porter equipment, representing the gold standard in EOL calibrations, that has been designed specifically for our labs. We also employ OE-adapted tools, procedures, and software for ADAS calibration, featuring OEM equipment and target positioning in an environment specifically designed for calibrating ADAS components.

For more points of view on this topic, see:

Think You Know All There Is to Know About ADAS?

Do Safety Features In Cars Actually Reduce Car Accidents?

Self-Driving Cars Aren’t Making Roads Safer. But These Systems Are