DOT HS 809 835 December 2004

Technical Report

Cost Per Life Saved by the Federal Motor

Vehicle Safety Standards

This document is available to the public from the National Technical Information Service, Springfield, Virginia 22161
The United States Government does not endorse products or 

manufacturers. Trade or manufacturers’ names appear only 

because they are considered essential to the object of this report. 
 Technical Report Documentation Page 

1. Report No. 

DOT HS 809 835

2. Government Accession No. 3. Recipient’s Catalog No. 

5. Report Date 

December 2004

4. Title and Subtitle 

Cost Per Life Saved by the Federal 

Motor Vehicle Safety Standards 6. Performing Organization Code 

7. Author(s) 

Charles J. Kahane, Ph.D.

8. Performing Organization Report No. 

9. Performing Organization Name and Address 10. Work Unit No. (TRAIS) 

Evaluation Division; National Center for Statistics and Analysis 

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 

Washington, DC 20590

11. Contract or Grant No. 

13. Type of Report and Period Covered 

NHTSA Technical Report

12. Sponsoring Agency Name and Address 

Department of Transportation 

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 

Washington, DC 20590

14. Sponsoring Agency Code 

15. Supplementary Notes 

 

16. Abstract 

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) began to evaluate its Federal Motor 

Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) in 1975. By December 2004, NHTSA had evaluated the life-saving 

benefits as well as the consumer cost for a substantial “core” group of safety technologies for passenger 

cars and LTVs (pickup trucks, sport utility vehicles and vans). 

In 2002, these technologies added an estimated $11,353,000,000 (in 2002 Dollars) to the cost of new cars 

and LTVs of that model year. They saved an estimated 20,851 lives in the cars and LTVs on the road 

during that calendar year. That amounts to $544,482 per life saved in 2002. 

These technologies added a total of $189,842,000,000 to the consumer cost of new cars and LTVs over 

model years 1968-2002. They saved 252,989 lives in model year 1968 and later vehicles during calendar 

years 1968-2002. That amounts to $750,782 (in 2002 Dollars) per life saved in 1968-2002. 

 

17. Key Words 

Statistical analysis; evaluation; benefits; costeffectiveness; fatality reduction; injury reduction; 

cost analysis

18. Distribution Statement 

Document is available to the public through the 

National Technical Information Service, 

Springfield, Virginia 22161

19. Security Classif. (Of this report) 

Unclassified

20. Security Classif. (Of this page) 

Unclassified

21. No. of Pages 

 12

22. Price 

Form DOT F 1700.7 (8-72) Reproduction of completed page authorized

 COST PER LIFE SAVED 

BY THE FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARDS 

Two reports summarize the benefits and costs of the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards 

(FMVSS). The first report estimates that the FMVSS and other safety technologies saved 

328,551 lives in calendar years 1960-2002, including 24,561 in 2002.1

 The second report 

estimates that the FMVSS added $839 (in 2002 Dollars) to the cost of a car in model year 2001 

and $711 to the cost of an LTV2

, smaller amounts in earlier years.3 The results of the two reports 

are not directly comparable, primarily because the first report includes benefits of several 

voluntary, pre-FMVSS and/or no-cost technologies omitted from the cost study, whereas the 

second report included the cost of a side-impact standard for passenger cars for which benefits 

have not yet been evaluated. 

Nevertheless, there is a substantial core group of safety technologies attributable to the FMVSS 

for which both benefits and costs have been estimated, and the cost per life saved can be 

computed. The computation is not based on a complex economic analysis, but on a direct 

comparison of consumer cost and lives saved. The purpose is to demonstrate, at an order-ofmagnitude level, the heuristic cost effectiveness of the FMVSS, not to compute an exact, societal 

benefit-cost ratio. 

In other words, this analysis does not include any: 

• Valuation, in Dollars or equivalent fatality units, for the many nonfatal injuries or crash 

damages avoided by the FMVSS (it strictly compares lives saved to cost). 

• Discounting or net-present-value calculations, either for costs or for the “value” of lives 

saved. 

• Projection of future lives saved by vehicles currently on the road (the FMVSS have 

already been paid for but the benefits will still accrue for many years until those vehicles 

are retired).

• Value of the lifetime additional fuel consumption due to weight added by the FMVSS. 

For example, the cost of the 8 million new cars and 7.9 million new LTVs sold in model year 

2002 included $11,353,000,000 for the vehicles to meet the core FMVSS (at $710 per car, 

excluding the $129 cost of the side impact standard, and $711 per LTV). During calendar year 

2002, the core FMVSS saved 20,851 lives, some in these model year 2002 vehicles, but most in 

earlier vehicles already on the road before 2002. Thus, in 2002 the payment per life saved was 

$544,000. 

 

1

 Kahane, C.J., Lives Saved by the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards and Other Vehicle Safety Technologies, 

1960-2002 – Passenger Cars and Light Trucks, NHTSA Technical Report No. DOT HS 809 833, Washington, 

2004. 2

 Light truck or van, including pickup trucks, sport utility vehicles (SUVs), minivans and full-size vans. 3

 Tarbet, M.J., Cost and Weight Added by the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards for Model Years 1968-2001 

in Passenger Cars and Light Trucks, NHTSA Technical Report No. DOT HS 809 834, Washington, 2004. 

1
The core group of technologies cost an estimated $544,000 (in 2002 Dollars) per life saved in 

2002, and an average of $751,000 (in 2002 Dollars) per life saved over the longer time period, 

1968-2002. These numbers indicate the FMVSS are, on the whole, highly cost-effective, far 

below the $3,000,000 per life saved that the Department of Transportation considers acceptable.

Exclusions from the “core” group of safety technologies 

The core group of technologies includes all those associated with regulations of greater-than-zero 

cost, whose benefits and costs have both been evaluated and included in the summary reports, 

but limited to the model years where benefits and costs are both known. The core group is most 

easily defined by describing what is excluded. 

The cost report begins with model year 1968, because the initial FMVSS went into effect on 

January 1, 1968. Therefore, any benefits in vehicles before model year 1968 are excluded from

the core group, even though some of the technologies were implemented before 1968 and their 

benefits estimated, back to calendar year 1960, in the lives-saved report. 

The cost report does not include any technologies introduced on a strictly voluntary basis, even if 

there is a tenuous subject-matter relationship with one of the FMVSS. The following voluntary 

technologies, whose benefits are included in the lives-saved report, are excluded from the core 

group: 

• Improvements to mid- and lower instrument panels that were never actually required by 

FMVSS 201. 

• Voluntary improvements to belts and other systems that improved performance on the 

frontal NCAP test. 

• Structural improvements in 2-door cars that reduced TTI(d) in side impact tests, on a 

voluntary basis, well before the dynamic test was added to FMVSS 214. 

Two FMVSS are excluded because they incorporate technologies that were implemented by the 

manufacturers well before any regulatory process by NHTSA or other government agencies, and 

are for that reason considered “no cost” in the summary report on costs: 

• High-penetration resistant (HPR) windshields, on all vehicles by 1966, subsequently 

incorporated into FMVSS 205. 

• Improvements to door locks, generally completed well before 1968, subsequently 

regulated by FMVSS 206. 

Two safety technologies are excluded because they did not result in a cost increase, and possibly 

even saved money. In the spirit of the cost report, we will not attribute “credit” for the lives they

saved to the associated FMVSS because, at zero or negative cost, these technologies would 

presumably have been implemented even in the absence of the FMVSS: 

• Front disc brakes, a technology related to FMVSS 105. 

• Adhesive windshield bonding, a technology related to FMVSS 212. 

2
Two technologies are excluded because they do not add anything to the consumer cost of a new 

car or LTV: 

• Conspicuity tape for heavy trailers (FMVSS 108): car and LTV occupants benefit from 

not hitting the trailers, but the cost accrues on the trailers. 

• Child safety seats (FMVSS 213): they must be purchased separately and are not part of 

the cost of a new car or LTV. 

In addition, we will limit benefits to those that accrue directly to car and LTV occupants, and not 

include the pedestrian, bicyclist and motorcyclist lives saved by dual master cylinders on cars 

and LTVs. 

Finally, two recent technologies are excluded because they have not been fully evaluated: 

• The dynamic side-impact test requirement of FMVSS 214: cost studies have been 

completed, but the estimation of benefits is still underway. 

• 3-point belts for rear-center occupants: benefits are included in the lives-saved report, but 

cost has not yet been estimated. 

The “core” group of safety technologies 

Despite these exclusions, a large core group of technologies remains that can be associated with 

specific FMVSS, and for which both costs and benefits have been estimated starting in model 

year 1968 or later. The following technologies significantly reduced fatalities while adding cost 

to new cars and/or LTVs: 

• Dual master cylinders (FMVSS 105) 

• Energy-absorbing steering assemblies (FMVSS 203/204) 

• Every type of safety belt at any seat position (FMVSS 208), except 3-point belts for rearcenter occupants. Although it is true that lap belts were widely introduced before 1968, 

much of the impetus came from State laws or regulations. These State laws may be 

considered Government actions that are “predecessors” of the FMVSS. (But only the 

costs and benefits from 1968 onward will be included in the core group.) Of course, the 

FMVSS have played a direct role in many of the improvements to belt systems after 1968 

that increased their effectiveness, use and consumer acceptance. 

• Frontal air bags (FMVSS 208) and on-off switches for passenger air bags in pickup 

trucks. 

• Side door beams, regulated by the static test requirement of FMVSS 214. 

• Roof crush strength, passenger cars (FMVSS 216). 

In addition, the following technologies were evaluated for cost and benefit. They added to the 

cost of a new vehicle, and although there was not a statistically significant reduction of fatalities, 

there were significant benefits of reducing injuries or avoiding crashes: 

• Side marker lamps (FMVSS 108) 

3
• Center High Mounted Stop Lamps (FMVSS 108) 

• Head restraints (FMVSS 202) 

• Fuel system integrity (FMVSS 301) 

One technology added cost, but the statistical evaluation did not identify any significant benefit: 

• Seat back locks in 2-door passenger cars (FMVSS 207) 

Finally, four technologies were found to add cost. No evaluations of benefit have been 

performed, but none are planned because there is little hope of finding a statistically significant 

effect in the limited crash data that would be relevant to the analysis. We will assume, 

conservatively, zero lives saved for these technologies: 

• Windshield washers, and upgraded wipers, for LTVs (FMVSS 104) 

• Safety devices for power windows (FMVSS 118) 

• Accelerator-pedal return systems (FMVSS 124) 

• Seatback padding to provide head impact protection for rear-seat occupants (FMVSS

201) 

In other words, the core group comprises all technologies included in the Executive Summary 

and summary tables of the cost report except those related to the dynamic test requirements of 

FMVSS 214 in passenger cars (whose benefits have not been evaluated). 

Consumer cost vs. lives saved 

Table 1 computes the annual and cumulative consumer cost of the core group of FMVSS for 

passenger cars, in model years 1968-2002, in 2002 Dollars. The first column of Table 1 

indicates new-car sales by model year. It is based on Polk NVPP registrations, for that model 

year, as of July 1 of the next calendar year.4

 New car sales have been in the 7-11 million range 

annually. 

The next column, the cost of all FMVSS per passenger car, is copied from the cost report.5

 

Excluding the cost of the dynamic requirement for FMVSS 214 that phased in during 1994-97, 

the cost of the core FMVSS increased from $169 in 1968 to almost $710 in 1997-2002. The 

total consumer cost of the FMVSS in passenger cars increased from $1,480,000,000 in 1968 to 

$5,716,000,000 in model year 2002. It amounted to $134,798,000,000 in model years 1968-

2002. 

 

4

 For example, MY 2002 registrations as of July 1, 2003; by then nearly all MY 2002 cars have been sold and few 

retired. NHTSA only has Polk files back to calendar year 1975. The numbers for MY 1968-73 are from MVMA 

Motor Vehicle Facts & Figures ’77, Motor Vehicle Manufacturers Association, Detroit, 1977, p. 34 (registrations in

the calendar year following the model year). They are also derived from Polk data, but NHTSA’s numbers for 1974

and 1975 are only 97.9% of MVMA’s numbers; thus, the MVMA numbers for 1968-73 have also been multiplied

by .979. 5

 The cost for 2002 is assumed to be the same as in 2001 (the last year in the cost report), since there was little or no

change in the specific FMVSS considered in the cost report. 

4
TABLE 1 – PASSENGER CARS: COST OF THE FMVSS, MODEL YEARS 1968-2002 

(in 2002 Dollars) 

 FMVSS COST PER CAR 

MODEL NEW CAR COST OF THE 

 YEAR SALES ALL EXCLUDED CORE CORE FMVSS 

 1968 8,742,568 $169.24 $ 0.00 $169.24 $1,480,000,000 

 1969 9,106,883 216.05 0.00 216.05 $1,968,000,000 

 1970 8,704,374 236.02 0.00 236.02 $2,054,000,000 

 1971 8,730,816 241.47 0.00 241.47 $2,108,000,000 

 1972 9,948,136 268.24 0.00 268.24 $2,668,000,000 

 1973 11,036,182 291.23 0.00 291.23 $3,214,000,000 

 1974 9,649,885 301.97 0.00 301.97 $2,914,000,000 

 1975 7,611,961 299.54 0.00 299.54 $2,280,000,000 

 1976 9,452,325 312.58 0.00 312.58 $2,955,000,000 

 1977 10,267,394 306.66 0.00 306.66 $3,149,000,000 

 1978 10,573,362 302.85 0.00 302.85 $3,202,000,000 

 1979 10,277,491 299.58 0.00 299.58 $3,079,000,000 

 1980 8,707,110 298.26 0.00 298.26 $2,597,000,000 

 1981 8,127,671 297.87 0.00 297.87 $2,421,000,000 

 1982 7,303,353 297.25 0.00 297.25 $2,171,000,000 

 1983 7,657,122 297.61 0.00 297.61 $2,279,000,000 

 1984 10,407,770 297.66 0.00 297.66 $3,098,000,000 

 1985 10,531,723 298.29 0.00 298.29 $3,142,000,000 

 1986 10,694,040 299.50 0.00 299.50 $3,203,000,000 

 1987 10,380,058 338.32 0.00 338.32 $3,512,000,000 

 1988 10,303,489 380.42 0.00 380.42 $3,920,000,000 

 1989 9,728,781 421.31 0.00 421.31 $4,099,000,000 

 1990 8,695,605 596.71 0.00 596.71 $5,189,000,000 

 1991 8,100,316 593.10 0.00 593.10 $4,804,000,000 

 1992 7,739,082 607.59 0.00 607.59 $4,702,000,000 

 1993 8,201,002 650.01 0.00 650.01 $5,331,000,000 

 1994 8,150,339 752.09 12.71 739.38 $6,026,000,000 

 1995 9,178,951 777.93 31.94 745.99 $6,847,000,000 

 1996 7,695,487 782.84 51.38 731.46 $5,629,000,000 

 1997 8,049,242 838.81 128.94 709.87 $5,714,000,000 

 1998 7,714,249 839.18 129.44 709.74 $5,475,000,000 

 1999 8,177,224 839.16 129.41 709.75 $5,804,000,000 

 2000 8,882,145 839.29 129.58 709.71 $6,304,000,000 

 2001 8,092,939 839.13 129.35 709.78 $5,744,000,000 

 2002 8,053,834 839.13 129.35 709.78 $5,716,000,000 

 =========== ================== 

 314,672,909 $134,798,000,000 

5
Table 2 estimates the lives of passenger car occupants saved by the core group of FMVSS. The 

first column of Table 2, copied from Table 2-4 of the lives-saved report, estimates that 232,255 

lives were saved in calendar years 1960-2002 by all of the safety technologies considered in that 

report, in cars of any model year. Two steps reduce those numbers to the benefits of just the core 

FMVSS. The middle column shows lives saved by all of the technologies, but only in cars of 

model year 1968 and later. The same model as in Part 2 of the lives-saved report, but with the 

data limited to model year 1968 and later, generates those estimates.6

 In the early years, a 

substantial proportion of the lives saved are in pre-1968 cars, but by the 1980’s the first two 

columns are quite similar, because most of the pre-1968 cars have been retired. The lives saved 

by the core group of FMVSS, shown in the last column, is obtained by deducting that model’s 

estimates for the voluntary, pre-FMVSS, no-cost and other safety technologies excluded from the 

core group. In 2002, 11,851 of the total 14,175 lives saved are included in the core group of 

FMVSS; altogether, 176,614 of 232,255 lives saved are in the core group. 

Tables 3 and 4 compute the costs and benefits of the core FMVSS in LTVs. The first column of 

Table 3 indicates that new-LTV sales increased from 1.5 million in 1968 to nearly 8 million in 

2002.7

 All of the LTV FMVSS in the cost report are included in the core group; the cost of the 

core FMVSS per LTV is copied from the cost report.8

 The consumer cost of the FMVSS in 

LTVs increased from $158,000,000 in 1968 to $5,637,000,000 in model year 2002, adding up to 

$55,044,000,000 in model years 1968-2002. 

The first column of Table 4, copied from Table 2-4 of the lives-saved report, estimates that 

94,117 lives were saved in LTVs during calendar years 1960-2002 by all of the safety 

technologies in all model years. When the analysis is limited to LTVs of model years 1968+, the 

estimate drops to 93,296. The core group of FMVSS saved 76,245 of these lives in 1968-2002. 

In 2002 alone, 9,000 of the total 10,331 lives saved are included in the core group. 

 

6

 The 252 lives saved in 1968 include 12 lives saved during CY 1967 in MY 1968 cars sold before January 1, 1968. 

These 12 were added to the 240 lives actually saved in calendar year 1968 for more direct comparability with the 

cost estimate (cost of the FMVSS for MY 1968 cars). 7

 Estimates for MY 1974-2002 are based on Polk NVPP registrations, for that model year, as of July 1 of the next

calendar year. The numbers for MY 1968-73 are from MVMA Motor Vehicle Facts & Figures ’77, p. 35. The 

MVMA numbers include heavy trucks as well as LTVs; they are multiplied by .938 to make them comparable to

subsequent NVPP numbers for LTVs only. Furthermore, the NVPP file for LTV registrations on July 1, 1977 is not

available to NHTSA. We used the registrations of MY 1976 LTVs on July 1, 1978, multiplied by 1.0027 (the

inverse of the average attrition of MY 1974 and 1977 LTVs from the first to the second calendar year after the 

model year). 8

 The cost for 2002 is assumed to be the same as in 2001, since there was little or no change in the specific FMVSS 

considered in the cost report. 

6
TABLE 2 – PASSENGER CARS: LIVES SAVED BY SAFETY TECHNOLOGIES, 

CALENDAR YEARS 1960-2002 

 LIVES SAVED BY SAFETY TECHNOLOGIES 

CALENDAR ALL CORE 

 YEAR ALL (MY 68+) FMVSS 

 1960 92 0 0 

 1961 95 0 0 

 1962 110 0 0 

 1963 131 0 0 

 1964 168 0 0 

 1965 211 0 0 

 1966 288 0 0 

 1967 444 0 0 

 1968 719 252 169 

 1969 1,042 586 395 

 1970 1,279 867 585 

 1971 1,574 1,180 793 

 1972 1,984 1,591 1,073 

 1973 2,282 1,921 1,303 

 1974 2,220 1,958 1,356 

 1975 2,723 2,492 1,786 

 1976 2,852 2,659 1,880 

 1977 3,190 3,015 2,065 

 1978 3,501 3,360 2,285 

 1979 3,657 3,546 2,337 

 1980 3,848 3,764 2,445 

 1981 3,758 3,697 2,374 

 1982 3,394 3,337 2,173 

 1983 3,534 3,494 2,286 

 1984 3,943 3,909 2,634 

 1985 5,196 5,160 3,767 

 1986 6,827 6,786 5,167 

 1987 7,783 7,751 5,975 

 1988 8,733 8,702 6,759 

 1989 8,677 8,652 6,763 

 1990 8,684 8,666 6,789 

 1991 8,943 8,926 7,074 

 1992 9,007 8,994 7,146 

 1993 9,916 9,903 7,982 

 1994 10,626 10,612 8,578 

 1995 11,115 11,108 8,957 

 1996 12,076 12,068 9,785 

 1997 12,146 12,138 9,866 

 1998 12,325 12,319 10,128 

 1999 12,401 12,393 10,140 

 2000 13,052 13,044 10,689 

 2001 13,532 13,526 11,258 

 2002 14,175 14,168 11,851 

 =========== =========== =========== 

 232,255 226,543 176,614 

7
TABLE 3 – LTVs: COST OF THE FMVSS, MODEL YEARS 1968-2002 

(in 2002 Dollars) 

MODEL NEW LTV CORE (ALL) FMVSS COST OF THE 

 YEAR SALES COST PER LTV CORE FMVSS 

 

 1968 1,483,642 $106.58 $158,000,000 

 1969 1,765,168 106.64 $188,000,000 

 1970 1,629,097 115.95 $189,000,000 

 1971 1,674,141 116.24 $195,000,000 

 1972 2,238,132 142.26 $318,000,000 

 1973 2,654,790 154.61 $410,000,000 

 1974 2,573,930 160.79 $414,000,000 

 1975 2,012,141 160.87 $324,000,000 

 1976 2,688,814 162.27 $436,000,000 

 1977 3,170,915 173.14 $549,000,000 

 1978 3,463,941 189.14 $655,000,000 

 1979 3,701,137 191.06 $707,000,000 

 1980 2,167,721 195.96 $425,000,000 

 1981 1,861,330 196.63 $366,000,000 

 1982 1,996,118 206.92 $413,000,000 

 1983 2,339,221 212.12 $496,000,000 

 1984 3,557,322 214.28 $762,000,000 

 1985 3,943,446 216.33 $853,000,000 

 1986 4,488,215 216.81 $973,000,000 

 1987 4,162,249 233.52 $972,000,000 

 1988 4,598,016 232.58 $1,069,000,000 

 1989 4,525,434 232.42 $1,052,000,000 

 1990 3,869,770 236.15 $914,000,000 

 1991 3,977,269 250.26 $995,000,000 

 1992 4,077,077 294.29 $1,200,000,000 

 1993 4,861,491 308.55 $1,500,000,000 

 1994 5,677,239 389.49 $2,211,000,000 

 1995 5,934,273 547.71 $3,250,000,000 

 1996 5,407,762 612.52 $3,312,000,000 

 1997 6,125,244 658.58 $4,034,000,000 

 1998 6,331,463 705.27 $4,465,000,000 

 1999 7,189,531 708.22 $5,092,000,000 

 2000 7,410,544 709.39 $5,257,000,000 

 2001 7,389,764 710.86 $5,253,000,000 

 2002 7,929,365 710.86 $5,637,000,000 

 =========== ================== 

 138,875,712 $55,044,000,000 

8
TABLE 4 – LTVs: LIVES SAVED BY SAFETY TECHNOLOGIES, 

CALENDAR YEARS 1960-2002 

 LIVES SAVED BY SAFETY TECHNOLOGIES 

CALENDAR ALL CORE 

 YEAR ALL (MY 68+) FMVSS 

 1960 22 0 0 

 1961 22 0 0 

 1962 25 0 0 

 1963 28 0 0 

 1964 34 0 0 

 1965 38 0 0 

 1966 46 0 0 

 1967 55 0 0 

 1968 80 22 16 

 1969 114 60 43 

 1970 136 92 63 

 1971 161 124 81 

 1972 194 161 100 

 1973 238 208 128 

 1974 244 222 138 

 1975 272 251 162 

 1976 324 306 188 

 1977 409 395 238 

 1978 462 448 260 

 1979 561 549 304 

 1980 608 596 300 

 1981 614 602 318 

 1982 585 576 304 

 1983 641 635 353 

 1984 815 804 483 

 1985 1,118 1,107 749 

 1986 1,620 1,606 1,174 

 1987 2,115 2,105 1,576 

 1988 2,457 2,439 1,865 

 1989 2,741 2,733 2,132 

 1990 2,957 2,948 2,317 

 1991 3,188 3,180 2,530 

 1992 3,417 3,408 2,763 

 1993 3,818 3,813 3,139 

 1994 4,469 4,462 3,698 

 1995 4,942 4,931 4,096 

 1996 5,679 5,673 4,754 

 1997 6,356 6,350 5,362 

 1998 6,998 6,988 5,938 

 1999 7,486 7,480 6,365 

 2000 8,682 8,676 7,479 

 2001 9,016 9,012 7,830 

 2002 10,331 10,330 9,000 

 =========== =========== =========== 

 94,117 93,296 76,245 

9
Finally, Table 5 compares the consumer cost and lives saved by the core group of FMVSS for 

cars and LTVs, combined. Adding the right columns of Tables 1 and 3, the first column of Table 

5 shows the core FMVSS added a total of $189,842,000,000 to the consumer cost of new cars 

and LTVs in model years 1968-2002. They saved 252,989 lives in model year 1968+ cars during 

calendar years 1968-2002 (sum of 176,614 from Table 2 and 76,245 from Table 4). That 

averages out to a cost of $750,782 per life saved in 1968-2002. 

In 2002 alone, the core FMVSS added $11,353,000,000 to the cost of new cars and LTVs of that

model year. They saved 20,851 lives in the cars and LTVs on the road during that calendar year. 

They cost $544,482 per life saved. The cost per life saved generally decreased from year to year 

during 1968-2002, primarily because belt use increased: the more people buckle up, the more 

benefit the public will obtain from equipment they have already paid for whether they use it or 

not. 

10
TABLE 5 – CONSUMER COST AND LIVES SAVED BY THE CORE FMVSS, 

CARS + LTVs, 1968-2002 

(in 2002 Dollars) 

 COST OF THE LIVES 

YEAR CORE FMVSS SAVED 

1968 $1,638,000,000 185 

1969 $2,156,000,000 438 

1970 $2,243,000,000 648 

1971 $2,303,000,000 874 

1972 $2,986,000,000 1,173 

1973 $3,624,000,000 1,431 

1974 $3,328,000,000 1,494 

1975 $2,604,000,000 1,948 

1976 $3,391,000,000 2,068 

1977 $3,698,000,000 2,303 

1978 $3,857,000,000 2,545 

1979 $3,786,000,000 2,641 

1980 $3,022,000,000 2,745 

1981 $2,787,000,000 2,692 

1982 $2,584,000,000 2,477 

1983 $2,775,000,000 2,639 

1984 $3,860,000,000 3,117 

1985 $3,995,000,000 4,516 

1986 $4,176,000,000 6,341 

1987 $4,484,000,000 7,551 

1988 $4,989,000,000 8,624 

1989 $5,151,000,000 8,895 

1990 $6,103,000,000 9,106 

1991 $5,799,000,000 9,604 

1992 $5,902,000,000 9,909 

1993 $6,831,000,000 11,121 

1994 $8,237,000,000 12,276 

1995 $10,097,000,000 13,053 

1996 $8,941,000,000 14,539 

1997 $9,748,000,000 15,228 

1998 $9,940,000,000 16,066 

1999 $10,896,000,000 16,505 

2000 $11,561,000,000 18,168 

2001 $10,997,000,000 19,088 

2002 $11,353,000,000 20,851 $544,482 per life saved in 2002 

 ================== =========== 

 $189,842,000,000 252,859 $750,782 per life saved in 1968-2002

 

11