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Improved vehicle safety rather than improved driving skills is responsible for a reduction in fatalities on the road, a recent survey has suggested.

According to the US-based Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), if people were still driving cars which had safety features typical of those in 1985, the number of fatalities would have almost certainly increased.

The group estimates that over 5,000 more people would have been killed as a result of road accidents in 2004, with cars possessing the design features of 20 years earlier.

IIHS president Adrian Lund highlighted the importance of improved driver safety, which may be a reassuring factor for those taking out car insurance, but also revealed the "loss of momentum [regarding driver safety] for effective traffic safety policies on belt use, alcohol-impaired driving and speeding".

Mr Lund explained that the group's research also demonstrated that posted speed limits were an important part of improving driver safety


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