Pedestrians and cyclists are 44% more likely to die if they are hit by an SUV or similar-sized vehicle rather than a traditional car, a study has found.
The figure rises to 82% for children, the analysis produced by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) and Imperial College London showed.
Researchers gathered data from more than 680,000 road collisions over the past 35 years.
They compared the severity of injuries suffered by pedestrians or cyclists struck by standard cars with light truck vehicles, which include SUVs, small vans, and pick-up trucks.
SUVs have grown in popularity around the world in recent years, with many drivers favouring their higher seating position.
SUVs are generally taller, wider, and heavier than traditional cars, and less fuel-efficient.
The study highlighted previous research showing that a key reason for the increased risk from SUVs is that they have a taller front end, which means a person is struck higher on their body.
This means an adult is hit in the pelvis rather than the knees, while a child is struck on the head not the pelvis.
A blunter front end also means a person is more likely to be thrown forward, which could result in the vehicle hitting them a second time or rolling over their body, the report added.
Researchers analysed 24 studies, including 16 from the US, with others from countries such as France, Germany and the Netherlands.
The authors estimate that the proportion of car crashes involving an SUV is around 20% in Europe and 45% in the US.
If all SUVs were replaced by standard cars, the number of pedestrians and cyclists killed in car crashes would decrease by an estimated 8% in Europe and 17% in the US, they said.
Anna Goodman, assistant professor at the LSHTM and senior author of the study, said: “Around the world, we have seen a huge increase in the sale of ever-larger cars.
“Previous research has found that this trend is substantially undermining progress towards net zero goals.
“Similarly, our findings indicate that this proliferation of larger vehicles threatens to undermine all the road safety gains being made on other fronts.
“Cities and countries around the world are starting to introduce measures to discourage the use of these large vehicles, and our study strengthens the road safety rationale for this.”
The research is published in the journal Injury Prevention.
Tanya Braun, director of external affairs and fundraising at charity Living Streets, said: “It’s clear that SUVs make people, especially children, less safe while walking on our streets.”
Nicholas Lyes, director of policy and standards at road safety charity IAM RoadSmart, said: “The clamour for larger SUVs is associated with demand for roomier vehicles and something sturdier to deal with the UK’s potholed roads.
“The most important factor in reducing collisions is to ensure people in control of them are better skilled, rather than outright bans.”
Environmental activists claim to have deflated tyres on thousands of SUVs in several European countries in recent years.
The Tyre Extinguishers said its supporters have taken action in cities across the country in an attempt to “make it impossible” to own the vehicles in urban areas.
