This accidentology study analyzed French national accident data from 2015–2024 for M₁ vehicles involved in frontal collisions. Overall occupancy rate was 1.4 persons per vehicle, with rear rows accounting for 11% of occupants. Rear right seats were most occupied (46%), followed by rear left (40%) and rear centre (12%). Fatalities occurred in 96% of front row occupants versus 4% in rear rows. Rear row occupants showed consistently lower severity outcomes across all injury categories compared to front row occupants, with no significant differences observed before or after 2020.

GIDAS data analysis examined abdominal injuries in car crashes from 2005–2025. Case selection included passenger cars registered 2005–2025, occupants over 11 years old, belted, with at least AIS 1 in AIS15REG5. The study analyzed 234 cars with 248 occupants sustaining abdominal injuries. Frontal impacts accounted for 71%, rear impacts 12%, left side impacts 10%, and right side impacts 8% of cases. Analysis examined injury distribution across AIS levels, gender, age, height, weight, delta V, seating position, and specific abdominal injuries.

Two presentations were delivered to the task force: one on abdominal injury assessment using human body models in frontal sled simulations, examining seatbelt trauma and submarining effects; and another proposing a real-world frontal crash assessment matrix based on field data, advocating for morphed human body models to represent diverse occupant sizes and ages. Continued discussion on priorities and workshop planning were postponed to the next meeting on April 14, 2026.

The agenda for the 14th session of Task Force Virtual Crash Testing covers approval of agenda and minutes, review of a progress dashboard, and a proposal for virtual testing introduced by France. Discussion items include assessment of Human Model readiness at various timeframes and feedback from HBM4VT network stakeholders. The session concludes with next steps and scheduling.

The task force discussed assessment of Human Body Model (HBM) readiness timelines, adding skull fractures, lumbar spine, and general kinematics to evaluation criteria. The group identified injury metrics and data gaps for each body region. TU Graz will gather additional stakeholder feedback. The next meeting is scheduled for 13 April 2026.

The agenda of the 4th meeting of Task Force 4 Frontal Impact & Restraint System Requirements includes a review of the progress dashboard, presentations of updated studies on abdominal injuries and rear row, continued discussion on priorities, and planning for a workshop in Japan.

The EqOP Task Force 4 held its first meeting with 28 participants to discuss frontal impact and restraint system requirements. Key priorities include addressing submarining and abdominal injury risks across diverse body types and crash scenarios. The group discussed robust evaluation procedures, seat position variability, and multi-scenario testing. Participants agreed to conduct further accident analysis, collect robustness evaluation ideas, and establish topic priorities before the next meeting on January 28, 2026.